


A Promise In Jade

by crowind



Series: Neo Fantasy Orthogonalia [2]
Category: BanG Dream! (Anime), BanG Dream! Girl's Band Party! (Video Game)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fantasy, Gen, NFO, Who's afraid of the big bad wolf, here be dragons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-01
Updated: 2021-02-09
Packaged: 2021-03-08 23:08:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 29,339
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27304627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crowind/pseuds/crowind
Summary: Once upon a time, a girl saved a lone wolf. When a dragon came to snatch the girl away, it was the wolf's turn to save the girl, even at the cost of her honor.
Relationships: Hikawa Sayo & Hazawa Tsugumi, Hikawa Sayo & Imai Lisa
Series: Neo Fantasy Orthogonalia [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1115751
Comments: 33
Kudos: 36





	1. Sun and Moon

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Late Summer Rain](https://archiveofourown.org/works/15791787) by [crowind](https://archiveofourown.org/users/crowind/pseuds/crowind). 



> Rated T for future violence, none too graphic but definitely more than the original story.  
> This is a rewrite of my second fic in this fandom ever, Late Summer Rain. I've been waffling on it for a bit, but finally decided to go for it. My fantasy muscles are rusty, so please do tell me when things got too confusing!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No violence in this part. The non-Roselia characters tagged will only appear in the next parts however.

The griffon skull candelabra stared dead-eyed at Sayo. Tonight was a full moon night. On such a night the inn withheld candles, let alone mage lights, penny-pinching as only denizens of the outer wings of Haneoka could. Easier to pretend the inn's gruel was edible, easier to think of her jobs as jobs, means to keep living without any higher purpose to them. Gone was the shine on her armor. After a month Sayo was no longer surprised or disgusted by the things she'd seen. She'd started her fall from grace a lifetime ago, now it was all she could do to keep her head above waters. 

Tonight she was meeting a new client. The woman calling herself Minato Yukina was a bard going by the looks of her — a fraud by Sayo's experience. Silver light formed a halo on her head like a crown, and her eyes were dark as the moon. The God of the Moon was the protector of those who travelled at night, and the light of the lost. Sayo was a Paladin of the Moon God once, although she wasn't the most pious even then. She didn't think she was so lost as to merit His patronage. Regardless, she didn't think there was any harm in listening. 

There was power in Yukina's voice, thrumming even when she wasn't exerting her magic. "Will you devote everything you have to our mission?" 

"I swear on my life." 

"That's nice, but all we need is your other leg. You don't want poor Lisa to starve, don't you?" 

The world shuddered. Something was wrong. This wasn't how things had gone in reality. She thought — she knew for certainty she'd both her legs then. But looking down, the left was wind, and a dragon was gnawing on the right. The dragon bared fangs red with Sayo's blood as though smiling, wild jade eyes staring ravenously, and Sayo was falling into the chasm… 

* * *

Sayo opened her eyes to darkness. Her eyelids felt heavy — for a moment she wondered, sluggish and detached, if her body hadn’t been cursed into lead. After a while her eyes adjusted to the darkness, and felt the softness of a bed underneath her. She couldn't feel anything from the hip down. 

A loud clatter jolted her awake. Her left hand reached automatically for her sword only to find it wasn't by her side. Someone apologized. Ako. Who had kicked down Sayo's sword. Someone had put it by the door, where it would've been more useful to her assailant than herself. 

She couldn't feel anything in her left leg, which was alarming at first until she could see it was still there, heavily bandaged. Heavily sedated as well. Her tongue felt like wool. 

"Where are we?" 

"Lisa's house, in the village Lisa and Yukina grew up in." 

The bed was narrow and Sayo tried not to think about the dust and other detritus it must have accumulated in those years no one was using it. "And where's she? Lady Minato and Magistra Shirokane." 

"Yukina's gone off with her father for a special training. It was so cool, you should've seen it! They sang and then this giant lyre just swung open like a door into another world. And just like that they were gone. No idea when they'll be back, though." 

Though in good health Sayo would've known humans had plumbed more ludicrous sources for their magic, in her current feverish haze she managed only, "I'm sure." 

"Oh, but she left you a letter! Don't worry, I haven't read it. I can't read anyway." 

Ako proclaimed this so proudly Sayo had to ask, "How did you become an acolyte while illiterate?" 

"I follow what the other necromancers do and… get a feel for the rest?" 

Deciding it wasn't worth the headache, Sayo prompted her for the location of the other members of their party. It was her duty to know. Udagawa said, "Rinrin's looking up some spells and Lisa's resting. She knocked herself out healing you — ah, I'm supposed to call her when you wake up!" 

"Don't. Let her rest. How long was I incapacitated?" 

"Inca — " Sayo rolled her eyes and conceded a simpler word. "Oh, you were out for just the night. Are you sure you don't want her to look at you? You look terrible." 

She wasn't feeling nearly so well either. With her return to consciousness came pain along with the chills that told her it wasn't an ordinary infection she was fighting. Poison, then. The FESpawn must have poisoned her when it had nearly torn off her leg. 

Abruptly she thought, Hina wouldn't have been caught in her situation. In the first place Hina would've defeated the fae monster without breaking a sweat, and if she'd been hurt she could've healed herself. The healing magic was available to Paladins as well, but unlike Hina, Sayo couldn't afford to be distracted from her martial arts training. Therefore, unlike Hina, she stood a chance to die or worse, lose a limb due to an incompetent healer. 

Sayo didn't remember if she'd ever replied to Ako. She bobbed in and out of a troubled sleep, visited with more visions of past too foggy to recall but too vivid to break free from. She dreamed of playing with Hina by the eternally frozen rivers that gave their grandfather his name. Then she was on her knees in the arena, under the moonlight, with Hina standing above her. Sayo couldn't see her face — if Hina was laughing at her she'd like to know. 

She tried opening her eyes. Her eyelids wouldn't answer, and when they finally, reluctantly opened, she saw only a shadowy figure bent over her injured leg. A red silhouette thrown against the light of dawn, and jade eyes like the veins of the earth glowed within. Still wrapped in the haze of dreams, Sayo yelled, "Begone, dragon!" and made to grab her sword. 

But her trusty weapon was still not at her side. Her hand flailed uselessly. The vision was broken, and suddenly there was no monster. Only Lisa stood in the soft light of dawn, grey eyes widening with fear. Then she wrestled her fright into a smile and said, "Sorry, I didn't notice you were awake. How're you feeling, Sayo?" 

So called upon, her leg throbbed with pain. Gritting her teeth, she answered, "What does it matter, healer?" 

It was uncouth to scorn the only healer available to her, but as it was Imai's negligence that had put her in this situation Sayo couldn't quite hold her temper. Lisa hid her flinch well, although if she'd hoped to placate Sayo she'd find her annoyance turning into ire. Too tired to act on it, Sayo listened to her prattling and handwringing. 

"I know it might sound trite and it must hurt terribly, but I needed to make sure because it was a close call. I thought I'd extracted all the poison… but it's good now. I've got it all out at least, the poison, not anything else that you might need, and everything's under control. So, how're you feeling, Sayo?" 

Well, she wasn't lacking in stubbornness. "Not too terrible," Sayo answered. And then, "Thanks to you. As it has always been, my life is in your hands. My gratitude if I live, and otherwise, it would be between your god and yours." 

Sayo meant to impress on her the gravity of the situation. Lisa frowned, a rare occurrence in itself. "Suppose I should be glad you're well enough to make a threat… Well, don't worry, I'm getting you back to normal even if it's the last thing I'll do." 

The unearthly green glow persisted long after darkness had claimed her. 

Sayo spent the next few days drifting in and out of sleep. There was always someone present when she awoke. One time — for she'd lost track of the days — it was afternoon. It was Rinko's turn. She was studying a foreboding tome, revolting for even a layperson to look at. Sayo suspected it wasn't made of leather as civilized people understood it. 

Rinko noticed her rousing and fluttered about hiding her tome. For most of her life, Rinko had lived alone with her master studying a magic that most mages found in Haneoka would balk away from. But Sayo thought it was a necessary evil to study the arts of their enemy. For someone must always be ready for when the elves' ambitions outgrew their temperance yet again. So she pretended she was too groggy to notice. 

Like Ako, Rinko wanted to call Imai right away, and again Sayo stopped her. "I don't suppose Lady Minato's back yet," said Sayo. 

"I-it might… take anywhere from three days to a month… though time flows differently in the domain she's going to…" Rinko said, wringing her hands. 

"She'll come back," Sayo said confidently, "Of her strength I have no doubt. But what of the FESpawn?" 

"It hasn't made a movement… Lord Minato said it wouldn't… or they wouldn't have left…" 

And as for her deference to Yukina's father, it turned out that he was once a part of the Haneoka Patrician's inner circle. A hero of the people until he'd made an error in foreseeing the coming of the FES and its spawns too early. For the crime of humiliating the Patrician before his peers, he'd been exiled to the edge of human civilization: this village. 

Well, almost. If Sayo had remembered her maps right, humanity's final frontier would be only a day's walk away. Beyond that were the elves, immortal and patient that they had nearly become myths, yet avaricious that they were sure to return the moment humans had forgotten them completely… 

Sayo walked the jade forest, jumping the shadows of elves. She'd never seen them, but she thought she'd know when she saw one. So this shadow formed by a barren tree, and that carcass of great monsters long extinct… 

The next, Ako was also in the room, listening raptly to Rinko reading from a book. Sayo recognized it as a fairytale from her childhood. A girl befriended a lone wolf separated from its pack. A dragon swept the girl away, and the wolf gave chase. The wolf and the dragon fought to the death. The wolf killed the dragon somehow, but the girl wasn't there. The end. 

"… Bright light poured out from where the wolf had bitten the dragon… and the dragon was no more… but in its place was the girl who was the wolf's friend…" 

"That's not how my sister used to read to me." Ako's pout was audible. "It doesn't make sense. Why would the girl also be the dragon?" 

It wasn't the version Sayo remembered either. Her eyelids and tongue felt out of reach. She wondered if healing magic was supposed to be so stupefying. Fairy tales were the furthest from her concern. And so once again she succumbed to sleep. 

As strange light washed her awake as if surfacing from the deep of the sea to a still more eerie depth. It was dark but for the light emanating from Lisa, casting half of her body into a shadow world. Sayo watched through half-lidded eyes — she couldn't do anything else. The numbness that always came with Lisa's healing enveloped her like a second skin. It was a long time before the light faded. Somewhere in the darkness Lisa sighed. As if released from a spell, Sayo finally gave voice to the doubt she'd carried since their first meeting. 

"Your magic doesn't seem characteristic of your Order." 

Now that her eyes had adjusted, she saw Imai flinch. "How long — wait, let me light a candle." 

Sunlight flared in one corner of the room. Sayo blinked and squinted. Lisa peered at her anxiously. "Does it hurt?" 

Sayo shook her head for the sole purpose of moving a part of her body. Kept talking too, because sleep was tiresome. "I feel nothing. It's most unusual for a healer of the Order of the Sun. If that's what you are." 

The magic of the Order of the Sun — which Lisa supposedly belonged to — was much like this magelight, faint and warm as sunset. And while healing, a raging fire burning at wounds until you couldn't tell if the pain came from the healing or the injury. By contrast Lisa's healing always robbed her of her senses — pain and fatigue and wariness, but also the passing of time and the clarity of mind that Sayo might have wanted to keep. 

The magelight cast a pall on Lisa as she took the bedside chair. "To be honest, I thought you'd never had contact with other healers. So suspicious about everything except this. But it looks like nothing gets past you." 

"It has never become necessary to doubt your nature. Lady Minato trusts you with her life, and more than that, your healing has saved my life too many times. But lately…" Even addle-pated, Sayo knew speaking of her dreams would only sound ridiculous. "Even so, I would like to know, for future reference." 

Lisa smiled as though she didn't quite believe Sayo, and rightly so. But she answered, "I'm sorry to disappoint then, because I don't know what's up with it. No one, not even the Temple Mother at Haneoka knows why my magic is different. But she said as long as I could use it to heal, it's acceptable to the Sun Goddess herself. As long as it's in service to a just cause. Actually, that sounds more like your Order, isn't it, a just cause." 

"And what do you know of that?" Her temper flared, as it always did when anyone touched on her past. 

Lisa seemed apologetic. "Nothing, sorry, I was just guessing from your fighting style and manners that you might've been a Paladin. Never talked to anyone about it, though. I thought Yukina must've known." 

Sayo was the first to blink. She forced herself to relax. It was an old story, and the stress only caused her leg to throb in pain. "She doesn't. I've never told her, and she's never asked, even though it would've been wise. But she knows that I've sworn to defend the weak, and I've not once broken my oath. That's all she needs to know to trust me." 

It didn't matter that Hina had never been weak, not in that moment nor ever. She was Sayo's little sister, and she had let her guard down for her sake, and Sayo had struck her. Meant to. It didn't matter. Some Paladin Sayo had been, keeping her oath in letter but not in spirit. And so of her own volition she had resigned. 

Lisa's gaze was uncomfortably piercing, as if her unusual magic also granted her an insight into her heart. Then it softened. "I know you take your oaths seriously, so there's got to be more to it. But I'm not going to pry. Just, you know, if you ever want to talk about it — no, I guess not." 

Sayo hadn't quite managed to hold back her grimace. Her eyes fell on the letter on the bedside table. Lisa followed her gaze and said, "Yukina wrote that, she was sorry she couldn't wait until you woke up." 

"Yes, Udagawa told me." Her eyelids were starting to feel heavy. Sayo wanted to reach the letter, but she could barely move her fingers. "Sister Imai, could you read…?" 

Dryly, Lisa said, "Despite how I look, yes, I do know my letters. I'm just kidding, Sayo." She picked the folded paper between the tip of her fingers. Are you sure you don't mind? Yukina wrote it for you." 

Sayo didn't like the somewhat off-color tone of her voice, but she couldn't muster more than a glare. Not the least fazed, Lisa smiled and opened the letter. As expected, there was nothing confidential in it, only the same explanation she'd heard from Rinko, an apology and a promise to return soon and triumphant. Still, Yukina had taken the time to write, and the personal touch left Sayo more appreciative. More ashamed, as well, that she was bed-bound while Yukina went alone to refine her abilities. She resolved to return to form in short order. 

Lisa had a conflicted expression on her face, gone the moment Sayo turned her unfocused eyes on her. Going on a hunch, Sayo said, "Did you know Lady Minato's father was originally from Haneoka?" 

"No. As far as I remember they'd always lived here, and my parents never said anything. And after they died I begged the first Sister who visited to take me with her to Haneoka. Leaving Yukina behind." Lisa's smile turned self-deprecating. "So no, I found out almost at the same time as everyone else. I hadn't talked to Yukina for a long time before meeting you in Haneoka." 

There was one other question Sayo wanted to ask, but lethargy overtook her. She yawned embarrassingly wide after spending so much time asleep. Lisa seized on the chance to douse her with more healing magic. 

Sayo tried to refuse. "Haven't you expended enough? had the chance to be reacquainted with your childhood home?" 

"There's nothing here for me anymore." 

That's right, Sayo thought stupidly, dead parents and gambling her future in a faraway capital as a child. There was something of her past that Imai didn't want Sayo to know, as much as Sayo didn't want Imai to know her history. As she struggled to convey her sympathy, uncharacteristic as it was of Sayo, Lisa found her opening. The jade forest welcomed Sayo into its fold once again. 


	2. Healer And Knight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Fairytales, tragic backstories, whimsical dreams, aren't they all the same?

When they were children, old enough to start learning swordfighting but young enough their grandfather hadn't packed the children of his younger son to squire with the Orders at faraway Haneoka, Hina had dreamed of meeting a dragon. As far as dreams went it was night impossible, given that death of all dragons had marked the beginning of the age of humans and the reconciliation with the gods. Never mind that as remnants of the primordial chaos, a dragon at the height of its power could kill a god. One had done so, which finally spurred the other gods out of their indolence and joined humans in exterminating dragons to the last egg. Hina had dreamed of finding one of the devourer of mountains and vanquisher of oceans, and accomplished what no heroes of legend had — Hina dreamed of befriending a dragon. 

Fortunately for Sayo, there hadn't been dragons in eons. By the time the twins were born, dragons had become the stuff of bedtime stories. They became mindless monsters who would enter the story simply to steal a girl like a fox stole a hen. This dragon was so weak and mundane a mere wolf could kill it. And thus the girl, rising out of the dragon's remains, was reunited with the wolf. 

Sayo paused in reading, repeating the lines she'd just read more slowly. It only served to make it more ambiguous, now implying the dragon and the girl had been one and the same from the beginning. "That can't be right," she muttered to herself. 

Ako nodded gravely. "I know, right? I told Rinrin it was different." 

Sayo eyed her skeptically, thinking it was quite the confidence in a storybook for someone who couldn't read. Her Order of Paladins had few contact with Ako's Order of Necromancers if they could help it. They were not, probably, evil, but neither were they particularly easy to deal with, nor necessary to the Paladins' daily function. As such Sayo couldn't be sure how unusual Ako was for a necromancer — small for her age and proudly illiterate, and despte that capable of raising a platoon of the dead on the regular. She seemed to have gotten by with talent. 

But talent or no talent, even a necromancer could only benefit from being able to read. More than that, they were both bored and desperate for a distraction. Mulling the idea, Sayo said, "You've memorized the story, then." 

"Of course! My sister used to read it to me every night!" 

"Would you not rather be able to read it yourself and see if your sister hadn't rewritten the story for your benefit?" 

"Tomoe would never!" 

In the end it wasn't Sayo's dubious persuasion skills but their combined boredom that kept Sayo and Ako on the project. Ako was a quick study, even if she couldn't compare to Hina — though, who could? It helped that it was a story of few words, and by noon Ako had reached the end, or else both their sanities wouldn't last. 

"Together… the girl and the wolf lived… uh, in peace? The… end… I did it! Huh, there's still one more page with more writing." Ako tapped the offending page. 

"Read it for me with your newfound literacy." 

"I can't read this, the writing's too different!" Though even as she pouted, Ako scrutinized the text all the same. Sayo read over her shoulder while she mouthed each letter, only giving hints when Ako seemed on the verge of giving up. As she'd pointed out, the new text was done in a stylish handwriting instead of printed as the previous pages had it. Rather than prose, it appeared to be a poem or a song. 

Ako pointed out the same thing. "I wonder what'll happen if we give it to Yukina to sing." 

"She's not here, is she? Moreover, it's exceedingly foolish to hand a song of unknown origins to a bard, especially one as powerful as Lady Minato." 

"How bad can it be? I mean, it's just, uh something dragon… and dragon… and oh here's light! and that one's dr— " 

"Not dragon, none of them are except for the first. If you'd only read slower you'd be able to understand it in its entirety." Shaking her head, Sayo took the book from her hands. "Awaken dragon, you who bare your fangs, awaken and enter the waiting maze. Call out to the new world, shine your light upon this wasteland." Sayo snorted. "See how none of it rhymes." 

"Pfft, that's because your monotone's ruining it, Sayo. Watch and learn." Ako puffed her chest and recited the verse entirely from memory. Her voice reverberated with the echoes of a distant, dismal place. The chill that ran down her spine made Sayo think it was the underworld. 

Somewhere, a flock of sheep bleated. Sayo came back to her senses. Ako stretched and yawned. "I'm gonna find Rinrin." 

And owing to the fact that she wasn't paying attention, she ran straight into Lisa just outside. "Oof, sorry Lisa! Bye Lisa!" Her footsteps pattered away before Lisa could even respond. In fact, she'd be waiting for Lisa's response for a long time. 

More out of restlessness than anything, Sayo called for her. Lisa came inside after a noticeable pause, looking as though her wits had been knocked out of her by the collision. Lisa seemed more wan every time Sayo saw her. It was vexing to look at, as though Sayo had asked her to run herself ragged healing her although there was no emergency. As though Sayo's injury had trapped her in a place she'd so badly wanted to leave behind. 

With effort, Lisa shook whatever cobweb was spun around her. "Hey, Sayo. How're you feeling today?" 

Standard healer greeting deserved standard patient reply. "Better. _I_ have had more rest than any one person could reasonably need these past few days. Unlike a certain someone." 

Lisa smiled, finally looking like her usual self. "Grumpy as usual, eh. That's better. Good. Well — " Her eyes fell on the fairytale book on Sayo's lap, still opened on the last page. 

"Ako found this among your collection. It seemed to be an important part of her childhood." Sayo peered at her widened eyes, curious. "Should we not have read this?" 

"I, no, not all, it's just that I, well, I don't remember seeing this book. May I?" 

At Sayo's nod she pinched the book by its spine and applied herself to it. Her mouth moved soundlessly as Ako had done, eyebrows crowding ever closer together. Then she closed the book with enough force to break a finger, rambling on about how she hadn't been back in forever, and really it was only by the Minatos' kindness that the house was still standing, and if Sayo would like lunch. 

Sayo spent the rest of the day wondering if it was possible that someone so awfully sociable could have failed to charm her own hometown. Then she berated herself for being so idle as to speculate on her charge's history. Her most annoying charge from whom Sayo couldn't take her eyes off. For the party's sake, of course, for the fealty she owed to Minato. 

The next day, five days into Yukina's training journey, Sayo was given leave to walk with the help of a cane. She took the opportunity to explore. There wasn't much to Lisa's house. Her room was the only chamber; in the centre of the house was a fireplace, and a bed barely fitting for two people was shoved in another corner. Sayo could scarce imagine people living in such a place. But then Sayo, while only the daughter of the younger son of a landed knight, had grown up with servants at her beck and call. 

"It's not much but it's — it was home," Lisa said. And how odd it was to see Lisa small with shame. Sayo hadn't said anything, but her silence and expression must've been enough. Before she could — what, apologize? — Lisa ushered her outside, to breathe fresh air, she said. 

Sayo's leg still wobbled if she put too much weight on it, but with exercise and pain she started feeling as though it was her own leg once again. Fresh air smelled just a bit of pine and wet wool. The last was thanks to the Minatos' flock of sheep. They were their closest neighbor; together the two families lived — when the Imais still lived — at the outskirts of the village, separated by a sparse wood. Sayo wondered what Yukina must've felt like growing up after Lisa had absconded, alone with only her parents and her music and the sheep. It was rather unbecoming of her to speculate on people's past; the rustic atmosphere must have gotten to her. 

"I should greet Lady Minato's mother," Sayo said, eyeing the upward slope standing between her and Yukina's childhood home. "As I understand it, that I am still standing is only by the generosity she has shown to us." 

"As nice as it is to see you fit enough for chivalry, no, you're not going up there. Anyway, I've been helping her with the sheep and other things, so I don't think we're being a bother to her." 

Sayo pretended she didn't notice that Lisa had subtly redirected her course through her speech. Not quite toward the village, she noticed. There was a path that seemed to branch toward nowhere. As Sayo wasn't thrilled to meet nosy strangers, she toddled as she pleased, Lisa following at an arm's length. 

"Must you do them yourself? Those 'other things' that leave you exhausted," said Sayo, glancing over her shoulder. 

"I'm sorry, I tried — does it still hurt anywhere?" A cloud of guilt hung over Lisa's face as she anxiously peered close, as if checking for hidden injuries. Sayo was confused, until she realized it must have seemed to Lisa that Sayo had found her service inadequate. 

She grabbed her wrist to stop her fussing. "I did not mean to imply that you ought to have exhausted yourself for my healing instead, nor that your work is in any way reproachable. Quite the opposite. Nevertheless, you shouldn't have to exhaust yourself at all." 

Lisa slowly lowered her hand, still perplexed. "I'm really not… they were just things that needed doing, Sayo. Besides, it's not like I have anything else I can do, with Yukina training in another dimension, and Ako and Rinko studying, and you — well, I need to do _something_." 

"I understand now. I kept you here when could've gone with Minato." That was the way of it, Lisa and Yukina, and Ako and Rinko, and Sayo standing between them and the world. 

Though Sayo understood her place, Lisa protested it wasn't the case. "That's not what I meant. But you got hurt — you nearly died, Sayo, because of me, because I'm weak and needed saving all the time. So I… did useless things to make myself feel better." 

Lisa pulled away, smiling a lopsided smile, and asked if Sayo wanted to continue exploring even into the village, or if she wanted to go back, since she looked pained. 

Sayo wanted to answer that yes, she was pained, of enduring Lisa's self-pity and attempt to sweep her dissatisfaction under the rug. But she'd an inkling it would only reinforce her malaise, so Sayo merely said, "Protecting anyone under my charge, including you, is my duty. Yours is to heal, as it is Magistra Shirokane's to continue learning arcane magic. To each our own duties, as it should be." 

Lisa shook her head. "Some healer I am. I have to sit battles out or I'd leave you an even easier target." 

"But that is no trouble to me." 

Sayo herself had once lamented — in the privacy of her mind — that the soporific effect of Lisa's magic had prevented her from getting some much needed support in the middle of battle. Nevertheless she had made her peace with it, had deviced her fighting style around the weakness. It was no trouble to her as long as Lisa was ready to assist when the battle was over. What she couldn't abide was the self-effacing tone Lisa had adopted, and the iron-clad confidence that Sayo must also despise her. 

The last poured like oil on to the restless flame she'd kept stoked during her bed rest. "It troubles me more to hear you disparage the comrade I'd trusted to watch my back. It is utterly vexing that I'm entrusting my life to someone who has given up on herself." 

Lisa's expression tightened, but all she said was, "Of course. I beg your pardon, Ser," and "You must be tired, we should return." 

"For what purpose, that you may drown me in the jade sleep once more?" Sayo thumped the cane impatiently. "I haven't had my fill of fresh air. But as for you, go lie down and rest for gods' sake." 

Lisa's jaw tightened. Sayo was reminded of her dreams. The red dragon crushing her leg with one bite. She shook off the image. 

Lisa turned away, muttering, "Indeed, what was I thinking, trying to care for a Paladin. You'd always know best." 

The path they parted on led to the village. Driven more by anger than any desire for reconnaisance, Sayo turned toward joining civilization. Her pride wouldn't stand seeing Lisa's face any longer, for a few hours at least. She knew she was being ridiculous. Paladins did not start a fight because they were bored, and certainly not when they meant to be helpful instead. But it was just as well Sayo was no longer a Paladin. 

Her leg was starting to throb. Sayo stopped walking, shifting her weight to her good leg. The woods was just before her, and beyond that the village. As she contemplated if the journey would be worth it, she could hear sounds of footsteps steadily approaching her. 

Sayo caught sight of two children rushing headlong before her severely diminished reflexes took over. She pivoted on her good leg, and a boy whizzed past the opening. The girl who'd been chasing him tripped over her cane. Laughter turned to tears in an instant. Sayo knelt awkwardly in front of the girl to get a better look. 

The boy fretted from a distance. Too scared of Sayo to approach, he took to shouting encouragement over Sayo's shoulder. "You dummy, pipe down or the lady who lives in the abandoned house's gonna come and eat us!" 

"It's only flesh wound," Sayo said, desperate to make the girl stop crying. She seemed to have a talent for setting off children into tears. Unfortunately, she'd just spurned her usual counter. Though if the girl kept crying surely Lisa would hear and come to find out. 

Thinking of what the boy had said, Sayo asked him to explain what he'd meant. He eyed her suspiciously at first, then her cane, and he shrugged. "Mom says to not play around here 'cuz the girl who used to live there killed her parents and then ran away, but now she's back. Say, you're not her, are you?" 

Sayo ignored his belated suspicion. Lisa had heard of the commotion and was approaching them with haste. Although the girl had calmed down after realizing she wasn't terribly hurt, to Sayo's amazement she started crying harder upon seeing Lisa. The boy, too, threw himself between them. 

"B-back off! I'm not g-gonna let you eat her!" he whimpered, knees trembling and on the verge of crying himself. 

Lisa didn't seem surprised, only resigned. In a soothing voice, she said, "I promise I won't. I'm only going to look at her foot." 

Neither children would budge or calm down. Lisa glanced at Sayo in exasperation. "All right, I'm not going to come closer. But you won't mind if this nice lady here takes a look, will you?" 

Sayo pretended she didn't see the boy skeptically mouthing 'What lady?' and shot Lisa a stern look. Whispered, "Sister Imai, are you out of your mind? I'm not a healer." 

"But you're a Paladin, and you must've learned first aid spells at some point." 

Between Lisa's distress and the children getting on her nerves, Sayo didn't see much point in arguing that she hadn't been a Paladin for some time, and even then she'd never excelled at the most basic of healing spells. 

After wracking her memories, and owing more to the fact that the girl's injury was trivial, after several failed starts the bruise faded to a more reasonable color. The girl finally stopped crying, wriggling her foot with wonder. 

The children thanked her, but Sayo only glowered. "You owe Sister Imai an apology." 

Peeking from behind her brother, the girl piped up, "If we don't is she gonna eat us like she did her parents?" 

Lisa sighed and tugged Sayo's arm, the other hand waving the children away. "As much as I appreaciate you defending my honor, It's not a big deal, you know," Lisa muttered, half-dragging, half-supporting Sayo as they made the trek back to her house. "Rather, I'm sorry you guys are tainted by association, even Yukina." 

"How is the defilement of your good name among the place of your birth not a big deal? And you must've been a child at the time." 

Sayo's cane thumped before the door into Lisa's house — Lisa's hut, in truth. Lisa's gaze fell to the ground. After a pregnant pause, she answered, "They were found here. My parents. Laid where you're standing, barely recognizable. Torn to shreds by a wild beast, either the one that mauled them or because they were left in the open for days. They never found the beast, if it existed to begin with, so they thought… Meanwhile I, the entire time I might've been inside." 

"You _might_ have been inside?" 

Lisa's shrug was nothing but affected. "I don't remember. They found me inside, alive and unharmed, yet I'd done nothing to help my parents or go seek help. I might've as good as killed them myself. So don't be too angry at those kids, all right?" 

Sayo caught her wrist before she could escape inside, forcing her to look at her. "And what do you expect I — as you're fond of reminding me — a former Paladin, to do with that information?" 

Smiling wanly, Lisa said, "I'm sorry I dumped such a depressing subject on you. I just wanted you to know the kind of a person you were defending." 

_Liar_. A Paladin of the Moon was — supposed to be, was perceived to be — a paragon of righteousness who could not abide evil. For a Paladin, murder was murder, and even a child murderer must face its consequences. That was, supposing it had been a murder at all — and Sayo was still not convinced it was. But Lisa seemed to be resigned to be judged as a murderer. The idea that Lisa might have been asking Sayo for such a judgement was as absurd as it was sickening. 

And yet that might well be her salvation as well. A Paladin was a defender of the truth. And truth cared not for the malicious whispers of frightened bystanders. Only the reality mattered. This Sayo believed, and so she asked, "Then tell me the truth. Did you kill your parents with your own hands? Rent them from limb to limb with your child teeth?" 

"I don't know, I can't remember any of it," Lisa said as if automatically. Sayo continued glaring until she said, "…No. I don't think so. Yukina's father doesn't think so. But — " 

"Then that is the only truth that matters. Neither Lady Minato nor her father found you guilty, even you knew deep down you didn't commit the deed. Furthermore, I highly doubt the Order of the Sun would induct into their ranks an acolyte guilty of such a heinous transgression. Nor was such an action consistent with the healer whom I trust to have my back." 

Sayo was prepared to argue until she was blue in the face or until Lisa accepted the truth. She was taken aback when she saw Lisa's lips quivering, and what seemed to be the beginning of tears. She stammered an apology, though Lisa rejected it. "A-ah no, you didn't offend me, I don't know why… it means more to me than you probably thought…" 

"I merely stood by the truth," Sayo said, flustered. 

Lisa laughed. "Of course, how could I expect anything else? You know, Sayo, I hated this place, and I still hate coming back here, but as long as you're here with me it's like nothing matters anymore." 

— 

That night Sayo dreamed of her first fight against a FESpawn, except not really. It was once again a full moon night though in her memories Sayo had been fighting with the sun in her eye. Although Yukina had assembled the party first before hunting their first FESpawn, in her dream only the bard was fighting beside Sayo. 

In the heat of the battle, Yukina suddenly stopped. The FESpawn's thorn speared through her head bloodlessly, holding it in place as it pivoted to face Sayo. 

"I tire of this," said dream Yukina in a monotone her real self would have envied. "It's all yours, Sayo. Keep Lisa fed, and don't forget to take her out on walks." 

Then she became a lyre and turned on the thorn, and swung off the dream world. Left alone, the FESpawn howled and lunged for the last remaining enemy. Sayo braced herself, but the blow never came. A red dragon swooped from the sky and snatched the FESpawn. Though smaller, the dragon easily tossed the FESpawn and swallowed it whole. Hungry jade eyes turned to Sayo next, and the dragon's fangs descended at her faster than she could react… 

— 

Sayo opened her eyes to darkness. Rinko was standing over her. "I apologize… but it's about the elves…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The verse Ako and Sayo read is more or less lifted from Opera of the Wasteland. Which unrelatedly, as far as I know, is the only Roselia song that hasn't been performed live.
> 
> I'm sort of doing NaNoWriMo! The result is this getting written faster than usual. You might also notice it now says 4 chapters total. What can I say, things tend to be spread out when they're massaged.


	3. Immortal And Mortal

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The abyss stared back with jade eyes. Here be dragons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some mild body horror and self-mutilation in this chapter.

Rinko snuck into her bedroom at the break of dawn. It didn't look as if she had slept at all. Wringing her hands, she whispered, "I apologize for the hour… but it can't wait… an unusual thaumaturgy activity…" 

Thaumaturgy, Sayo's sluggish jade-encrusted brain told her, was the mage-approved name for the arcane arts. The only sphere where humans and elves stood on equal grounds. And this was worth waking her in the dead of the night because — Sayo had to wrack her brain — because within a few days' journey was the Eternal Chasm which separated humans and elves. And although the blood pact had held for nearly a hundred years, the possibility of an elven incursion jolted Sayo out of sleep. 

While Hina had dreamed of dragons, Sayo's dreams had been closer to earth. Her daydreams and her early aspirations for the sword had been filled with elves. Not for glory nor riches, but for the certainty that someday the elves would return to once again plague humanity. A long-lived race, elves lived to covet, or so the history books taught her. And mortal and eternally young though humans might be in comparison, to humanity were granted the wisdom and treasures and sheer magic that would always be beyond the elves. Over one hundred years ago they suddenly revealed themselves to humanity after an eternity of aloof existence, and while the Princeps of the city-states had been debating diplomacy, the elves made their mark on human history. She had but need to look at the once vibrant river running through the Hikawa's fertile land, now forever frozen and leeching life from the land. The elves had done that, and given the opportunity they would remake the rest of the world in their image. Since Sayo was young, she had always believed they would, in fact, have that opportunity. They had outlasted the humans who had fought them off, and soon any of their descendants who might've been raised to be wary. Therefore as a knight, and then a Paladin, it was her duty — she had made it her duty to be constantly vigilant for any signs of the elves' return. 

And now, practicing their magic on their own lands, noticeable even from across the supposedly unbridgeable gap… For clarity, Sayo asked, "Is it coming from beyond the Eternal Chasm?" 

"No, from our side and quite nearby… It's faint but I'm worried… I'd like to cast a scrying spell but… I can't do it here… I must go to where there are no people…" 

Sayo bit back a yawn, thinking. Coming from their side would almost eliminate the elves as a possibility. On the other hand, very few human mages practiced thaumaturgy. And Rinko proposing to go without being ordered by Yukina spoke volumes to her worry. In matters of magic Yukina always deferred to Rinko. It seemed wise for Sayo to do so as well. "All right, give me a few moments." 

Rinko shook her head. "With due respect, Ser Hikawa, you're not fully recovered… I'll take Ako, and Sister Imai should remain here with you… We won't go too far…" 

Sayo bit the inside of her cheek. Rinko spoke the truth, however much her pride wished to deny it. "I don't like it," groused Sayo, "But I don't see what other choice we have. Please return to us at the first sign of trouble. Do not engage the threat alone if it is a threat, even if it doesn't seem like a threat." 

After that there was no point in returning to sleep. Sayo grabbed her sword and went outside, sneaking past the restless lump curled in the corner. Outside was still dark. Sayo began with a warm-up, slowly bringing herself up to speed. Her leg didn't bother her anymore, but she'd been sedentary for so long her muscles were stiff. Though exhausting and occasionally painful, these drills gave her a sense of comfort, that finally things had a chance to return to a semblance of normalcy. At the very least, Sayo would be able to take action. As her body ran through the familiar forms her mind wandered. She made plans. Their first order of business would be to defeat the FESpawn before it could ravage the lands. Sayo saw in her mind the monster, its claws and fangs and fire. Last time she had been careless — had needlessly compromised herself in her rush to protect Lisa. But next time — the imaginary FESpawn lunged at Sayo head on — next time she would twist her torso just so, allow the FESpawn's poisonous fangs to miss her just so, and she would plunge her blade straight through the vulnerable strip of its neck just so… 

And should the monster aim for any of the more vulnerable members of the party, and it was either Sayo or that other member… 

"Sayo! There you are! I can't find Ako and Rinko!" 

As Sayo thwarted her imaginary opponent for the fifth time, Lisa emerged from the house dishevelled and at wit's end. Sayo said, "They're out exploring. Magistra Shirokane promised me they wouldn't be out too long." 

Lisa stared at her for a long time. "What's there to explore? Are you hiding something from me? And who allowed you to wield a sword?" 

"The're investigating an arcane magic activity. Nothing either you or I can help with, nor understand," Sayo said decisively, sheathing her sword. "Will you tell me what has you agitated?" 

Lisa didn't comply or dodge the question as she normally would. Something ancient and wild like rage spasmed through her face. Just as suddenly, she ran a hand over her face and the tension was gone, replaced with an unconvincing smile. "I'm sorry, there was no need to yell at you. It's… oh, you'll laugh at me. I had a nightmare, that's all." 

"How laughable, to be visited by that which darkens everyone's sleep every night." 

"I, uh, think your Paladin-ness is skewing your sense of normalcy…" 

"Then will you tell me what is 'normal' for a Sister? I won't laugh, have you ever seen me laugh at anything?" 

Lisa snorted, the smile reaching her eye this time. It was a small thing, but everything seemed brighter for it. "One of these days I'll get you to laugh for real. I'm not sure what I dreamed, really. Something sad and tragic, I guess. It felt like everyone else is gone, and yet everyone else is also still here. In this vast universe where there are all things bright and dark and great and small, immortal and mortal, dead and undead, I am the only one who doesn't belong. I know it doesn't make sense, but in that dream I felt… expunged. As if I shouldn't exist — I felt for certain it's better for the world that I don't. But at the same time I also felt this great sorrow growing until I can't breathe. Sorrow, and… wrath, I suppose, I wanted to set the world on fire. Even the gods in their heavens and the spirits in the underworld. Even Yukina and you and Rinko and Ako. And I dreamed that I did. Set everyone and everything on fire. Brought about the end of the world, somehow." 

Sayo did think it sounded laughable. Lisa's bright personality and instinctual kindness would guarantee her a place in whichever society she strolled into. For better or worse Sayo had trouble imagining Lisa's wrath in any shape of form. Nevertheless she knew speaking her mind bluntly as was ehr wont would do more harm. In the sun Lisa seemed gaunt, more than pale, as though she could become one with the sunlight if Sayo looked away. Not knowing what to do, Sayo raised her hand, then realized it was the one holding her sheathed sword, and moved the sword to her other hand. And while Lisa watched apprehensively, Sayo brushed imaginary dust off Lisa's sleeve. "I'm sure they'll be back soon, and if not we'll seek them. In the meantime, Sister Imai, I'd like to continue our talk from yesterday." 

"Uh, I thought we left on a good enough note." 

"I might have left you with the impression that I didn't think you have done enough for our party. That couldn't be further from the truth. You are the heart that holds our party together. Our bastion, physically as a healer, and spiritually… Sister Imai?" 

Lisa's eyes had glazed over. That happened often enough with the people Sayo was speaking to that she'd learned to ignore or make pointed rebuke of it. But not Lisa, who was usually attentive, and skilled at hiding when she was not. As Sayo was about to ask her out of worry, Lisa's head snapped around. Like a hound who'd heard the fox whistle inaudible to Sayo, she bolted toward the woods. And she was fast. Cursing her aching leg, Sayo gave chase. 

Things went wrong the moment she set foot in the woods. Sounds faded, and colors took on a slightly wrong sheen that turned nauseating when she stared at one point too long. The trees were wrong, they were nothing of the kind she'd seen yesterday. It was not fallen leaves she stepped on, but fossilized bones. Bones littered the forest, smaller ones that could belong to humans, broken skulls belonging to no known predators and fitted with too many teeth, and what seemed to be a ribcage that could house the Sun and Moon Temples of Haneoka. Rather than a forest, she was running through an ossuary. For how long she'd followed Lisa twisting and turning, always just out of sight, she didn't know. And what she was chasing — what was Sayo chasing? The longer she ran, the less she thought of where she'd come from or gone after. 

She only stopped when a familiar voice called out to her, a voice she'd hoped to never hear again. "I wouldn't get near Lisa right now, if I were you. Wouldn't you rather catch up with me, Sayo?" 

Gone was the heartbroken but victorious Hina she had parted with at Haneoka. Hina was a blazing sight, resplendent in the full armor of a Knight and a grin to match the sun itself. Sayo's eyes were immediately drawn to the gash across the sun emblazoned on her pauldron. It seemed not only Sayo had resigned from her Order. It was always so with Hina. Following Sayo to Haneoka even though their grandfather had deemed her useful enough to keep with him. Very nearly she would have also pledged herself to the Moon God but for Sayo's insistence that House Hikawa offered one twin for each twin gods. And now here, at the end of the world. The old envy was rekindled, having grown stronger during separation instead of weaker as she'd hoped. 

"What is the meaning of this, Hina? Why are you here?" 

"To see you, of course! My one and only beloved sister in the world!" Sayo frowned. Hina shrugged and added, "And because Chisato gets seriously cranky when she's interrupted." 

"I don't have time for this. Move, Hina," Sayo said as she gripped the hilt of her sword. It was a bluff as much as it was not. Sword or no sword, Hina would always yield to Sayo's will if she insisted. And moreso that Sayo had drawn her sword on Hina before, and judging by the rare trepidation in her eye, her twin remembered it. It pleased as much as it nauseated Sayo, but she justified it with there being a life on the line. Lisa was in danger. She had no time for playing with Hina. Sayo held the point steady on Hina's throat, and when it became clear she would not budge, Hina stepped aside. Sayo ran past her, pretending not to see Hina's melancholy. It was only her wishful thinking, surely, Sayo had never been too kind to Hina, had never given her reason to expect reconciliation. 

Past Hina, she was hit with the sensation that she'd been here before. At the end of the jade forest the red dragon was awaiting her, and at the end of each dream a battle to the death. At the heart of the forest she found only Lisa curled into herself. Sayo very nearly leapt in without thinking, but Hina stopped her. 

"It's finally starting," said Hina. "Actually, maybe you should leave. For your own good." 

"I'm not leaving without her!" Sayo jerked free of Hina's grip. 

"Sayo? Is that you?" 

Lisa's head snapped up, and both twins presently forgot each other. The whites of Lisa's eyes had emptied. A pair of jade disks stared at Sayo from the remaining void. Dark lines ran from the top of her head to the tips of her fingers. Fissures, rather. A pulsating wave of dread emanated from the fissures, intensifying the more Sayo became aware of it. It was as if something was beating against Lisa from the inside. As though she was an egg about to hatch. 

Sayo shook herself and once again made to approach her, but Lisa shrank from her grasp. "Don't! Just kill me." Lisa spoke like flints struck together and given words. "If you want to help me, kill me, cut my head off. Now, Sayo!" 

Thinking it was only hysterics, Sayo once more tried to grab her. Lisa lashed out. gouging Sayo's forearm. With the ferocity of a wild monster, she lunged at Sayo, and it took all of her self-control not to defend herself with her sword. She was, for the first time since entering this distorted place, at a loss. She'd have parted with her sword arm if it hadn't been for Hina. No, Sayo realized, Lisa's true purpose was — 

But Hina was not a prodigy for nothing. Faster than Sayo could stop her, she'd put herself between them and swung her sword with the force of a decapitating blow. It collided with a deafening sound against a magical barrier that suddenly sprung around Lisa. Hina swore, ceasing her attack though she didn't lower her sword. 

A disembodied voice cut through the chaos. "I left you to take care of your sister, as promised. Imagine my surprise when you repaid it with undoing my efforts, Hina." 

A woman stood before Sayo as though she'd always been standing there all along. Not a woman but an elf, that much was obvious from a single glance. None of the artists through the generations had done the elves any justice when they had bothered to portray humanity's greatest enemy with any dignity at all. She was breathtakingly beautiful, so beautiful that all things became unsightly in her presence. And the contempt in her eyes entranced even Sayo, who was used to ignoring the obligate pride of the noble class. 

Here was an elf, and Hina spoke to her casually as she would to a fellow squire at Haneoka. "But Chisato, I can't stand by and let my sister be dragon food. Does it really have to be her?" 

"Don't test me, Hina." 

The name Hina gave for the elf jostled Sayo's memory. Hina had stopped Sayo from interrupting _an elf's_ scheme. Furious, elated that she had a target for her sword, Sayo demanded that the elf disclose of her plans. "What have you done to Sister Imai?" 

Even the elf's scowl was arresting in her utter disdain of being spoken to by a human. "Sister, you say? Not content with imprisoning her in such an abject form, you've also made her a servant of the boorish upstarts you call gods." She turned to Hina, Sayo no more than a speck on her dress she'd swept off. "All you humans look alike to me, but I suppose this sister of yours resemble you in all the ways that matter. Now come, Hina. We were never supposed to stop here to begin with." 

"Wait," Sayo said, but an invisible force — the elf's magic — kept her in place. 

Hina paused, a terrible longing in her face. "You remember that story you used to read me every night, with the dragon and the wolf? Just go with it, and everything will be fine. I believe you, Sayo! See ya later, Lisa, and you'd better not have eaten my sister!" With one last reluctant glance her way, Hina waved and joined the elf. They vanished in the space between blinks. The elf's binding only released Sayo seconds later when it was too late. Dried leaves broke under her boots with the noise of broken bones. 

Lisa made a pitiful noise and brought her wrist to her mouth. Sayo saw a flash of too many teeth, sharper and longer than could reasonably fit into a human's jaws, and was thus too stunned to stop her. The entire forest seemed to shudder with the force of the bite. Lisa groaned and put her arm away, but not before Sayo saw flesh and bone sloughing off to reveal a pulsating darkness in the process of shifting away from the shape of a hand. 

"What are you doing?" she barked as she tried to wrestle Lisa, lest she tried that stunt again. A futile attempt to make sense of the situation, but Sayo didn't know what else to do. 

Lisa didn't seem keen to either attack Sayo or herself, at least. She merely bent as if to kiss the ground — thereby exposing her neck for Sayo's blade. "You said you've never broken your oaths. Do you swear so, Paladin?" 

"And I swear now as your friend that I will never abandon you in your time of need. But I do not know how to help you. Come, we must find someone who does. Magistra Shirokane, surely — " 

The bowed head shivered. Her voice grew coarser, less human. "Rinko will only tell you what I'm asking you to do now. If you're the righteous Paladin I know you to be in your heart, you will kill me now while I'm still myself. That's our — it's humanity's only chance." 

"You speak nonsense. The elf weaved tall tales to deceive you." Yet even as she denied it, dread grew large in Sayo. Whatever the elf had done to Lisa, it would surely, as Lisa herself had implied, mean nothing good for humanity. 

Even Sayo was starting to feel the other things also gathering, awakening from their long slumber. Ancient power was amassing in this lightless place. The sorrow of an entire race culled to the last of its young; the wrath of a primordial existence usurped by younger, weaker beings; cries for justice, for vengeance and eternal grudge that would be reckoned with here and now, beginning with the puny human being cowering before her. 

Sayo's instinct, the one she'd honed and that which had saved her life so many times, screamed at her to do as Lisa wanted and take the sword to her. Now, before the dragons could wreak havoc once more. Let what had been dead for an eternity remain dead for an eternity more. 

It would put Lisa out of an unfathomable misery. 

All the reasons in the world to move, and for no reason at all Sayo kept still. The wolf's fang carved on the grip bit into her palms, yet she wouldn't, couldn't find it in her to swing the blade. Soon the time to act was past. Lisa keeled over, screaming a language that sounded unmistakably like a curse. The beat of a heart too large for her small frame echoed among the fossils of the forest. It reverberated in Sayo's bones along with the next beat, and the next, each stronger than the last. The egg was hatching. Alone with her trusty sword and her oaths, Sayo could do nothing but stood vigil as the shell sloughed off one piece at a time. 

And when the red dragon glared down at Sayo with jade eyes brimming with a newborn's hunger and an ancient clan's insatiable appetite for vengeance, she was ready. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> [Boss battle theme](https://twitter.com/jaycrowind/status/1330424362793635841?s=20)  
> If you're wondering why, the answer is most likely 'why not'. Baby dragon Lisa sounds fun, doesn't it?  
> Re:tags, I'm still not sure what fits and what doesn't so let me know.


	4. Tsugumi and the Wolf (I)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's the same as always in Uehara Castle until Tsugumi came face to face with a wolf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Non-graphic violence at the end.

At another day and tens of miles away, in a forest near to the end of the world, a young woman named Tsugumi was facing a dilemma. There was a wolf growling in her face. Tsugumi had never seen a wolf, but she imagined it would look like the creature in front of her. It was greater than the greatest of draft horses and silky dark as the night itself. It looked like it could swallow Tomoe whole. Fear kept Tsugumi's knees locked. The wolf growled and snapped, fur raising on edge to make it seem even more gigantic. But by the whims of the gods, it hadn't pounced on the easy prey Tsugumi was making of herself. 

The clouds shifted and more sunlight fell. It was then Tsugumi saw the shape under the wolf. It looked like a human lying prone. Compassion drove Tsugumi to take a step closer in an attempt to see if the person was still alive. The wolf snarled, and Tsugumi recoiled. But she couldn't bring herself to leave. If there was any chance the person was still alive, she would be guilty of leaving them possibly wounded or dying. 

While Tsugumi hesitated, the wolf arrived at a decision before she did. It jerked forward, a muzzle full of sharp teeth nearly touched her own nose. The wolf growled, and Tsugumi fell with an undignified yelp. _This is it_ , Tsugumi thought as she closed her eyes. 

The moment never came. A barbaric roar, followed by Tomoe's "Get your paws off Tsugu!" and Tomoe's spear missing the wolf's ear by an inch. Tsugumi hoped the spear hadn't hit the body. Tomoe herself appeared in an instant, shielding Tsugumi with her body, her eyes never leaving the wolf as she asked, "Tsugu, are you okay?" 

"I'm fine, but there might be someone behind the wolf." 

"Then they're as good as dead." As Tomoe spoke the wolf started edging closer, but Tomoe jabbed her spear again and it stayed. Its brilliant green eyes locked with Tsugumi's. Thinking, Tsugumi realized. Calculating, deliberating in a way no beasts, even domesticated and highly intelligent, had ever shown doing. 

Tomoe suddenly yelled and lunged spearpoint first, grazing the wolf's shoulder. Letting out a blood-curdling howl, it seemed to grow bigger. _This is it for real_ , Tsugumi thought, and once again she was thwarted. The body groaned — so it was alive! thought Tsugumi triumphantly. Tomoe would've scolded her for getting distracted, but fortunately for her the wolf was equally distracted if not more so. It tilted its head to stare. A plaintive whine more like a loyal dog's leaked from its throat. The fallen woman stirred. The wolf bolted, disappearing into the forest. Tomoe almost gave pursuit if not for Tsugumi gripping her arm tightly. 

"We should see if she's okay," Tsugumi said. 

Spear still in hand, Tomoe knelt and examined the body. Tsugumi wanted to help, though she shied away when she noticed the woman had no clothes on. Tomoe whistled. "Well I'll be, she's still alive after all." 

"O-oh, thank the gods, then." Without looking — too much — Tsugumi unfastened her cloak and draped it on the woman. She pretended not to hear Tomoe's amused snort as Tomoe tucked the cloak around the body. "Let's bring her back with us. I'll talk to Himari." 

"That's the problem. Lady Uehara hasn't been pleased with Himari's… Himari-ness lately. She might just kick us all out as discipline." Sensibly grumbling though she was, Tomoe handed her spear to Tsugumi and hauled the woman on her back as though she weighed nothing. "Anyway, Tsugu, what did I tell you about going into the forest alone?" 

She received the same rebuke from Himari later back at the castle. Himari was as much alarmed by the wolf as she was excited. 

"A mysterious beast, you say? You were lucky Tomoe got to you before it did. And that woman too, she got off light. Was the beast too injured to finish her off?" 

"Oh, no, it's a wolf, you see, and it would never attack me. Not that I've seen a wolf so I'm just guessing, really. But I got a feeling like I'm in that children's tale, The Dragon and The Wolf?" She didn't miss the way Tomoe and Himari exchange exasperated glances. Tsugumi's penchant for befriending animals in distress — or as Tomoe would say, dangerous beasts — always got this reaction. If Moca had been present she'd have teased her, and Ran would've supplied an arcane knowledge in the case it was a magical beast she'd encountered. She felt their absences anew. 

She wasn't the only one reminded of the holes in their numbers. Somber, Tomoe said, "Yeah, I remember that one. Ako wouldn't go to sleep without hearing it." 

Tsugumi and Himari very carefully didn't look at each other. Tomoe'd never gotten over her sister's disappearance, but with time she got more practiced at pretending it didn't bother her. Blithely, Tomoe continued, "Still, a beast straight out of a fairy tale roaming around here doesn't sound good. Makes you wonder if the elves are up to something." 

"Do you think it's really the elves?" Tsugumi asked. Nobody had seen the elves for close to a century now. Himari, Tomoe, and Tsugumi were the latest in a line of an army garrisoned at the frontier solely for the purpose of monitoring and intercepting the elves should they return. Though Tsugumi would never admit it to others, on most days she'd forgotten it was her family's raison d'etre. Uehara Castle was home, and serving its lords and ladies was her job. She'd suspected a lot of the people inhabiting the Castle had also forgotten even as they trained for combat everyday. 

But Himari wouldn't forget. As Lady Uehara's heir apparent it seemed her it was her entire job to remember. If Tsugumi hadn't known her since they were little, Tsugumi would've said Himari was more excited than necessary at the mention of elves. "Do you really think so? Then should we call a hunt for the wolf? I think we should." 

"I was thinking, Ran — or her father, Magister Mitake, rather — would know more about elf magic, if it's really the elves." Tsugumi said. "We should ask them the next time they visit." 

"And when is that," scoffed Tomoe. Tsugumi clammed up. All she knew was that before Ran had left with her father she'd seen Tomoe last, and after that Tomoe reacted to any mention of Ran like a cat took to water. 

"I'll send a message to them right now," Himari said decisively. 

Tomoe said, "Actually, what we really should do right now is report to your sister." 

"You've already reported to me!" whined Himari as she followed on Tomoe's heels. 

Tsugumi observed their guest. Now wrapped in Tsugumi's clothes, she continued slumbering peacefully. All that noise and she still hadn't awakened. "What's your story, poor stranger? And that wolf too, it seems almost protective of you," mumbled Tsugumi. No one answered, of course. 

Tsugumi went about her duties, most of which were related to tending to her father's griffons. Everyone had their duties in the Uehara Castle. Right now, assuming Lady Uehara hadn't assembled a hunting party for the wolf, Tomoe would be back to patrolling the perimeters. And Himari, still smarting from her older sister's rebuke, would be found at odd points in the Castle and its environs conducting surprise inspections. There was a chance Lady Uehara would hear of it and reprimand her again. Life at Uehara Castle proceeded on its own pace, the same as always. 

This morning Tsugumi had gone into the forest to collect herbs for mixing a poultice. One of the griffons had gotten cross with a rookie rider and both rider and mount had ended up injured. Then she had to feed it and the others, and cleaned the stables. 

With all the chores for the afternoon done, Tsugumi thought of checking in on the stranger. She made her way back to her quarters. She thought mostly of the wolf. Such a majestic creature, and she was certain she hadn't imagined the intelligence behind its eyes. And now that she was not on the wrong side of the wolf's claws, she started to see the situation differently. Started wondering if she and Tomoe had had it wrong all along, that the wolf had been protecting — 

Lost in thought, Tsugumi ran straight into another person. She didn't recognize him until he cradled his hand — to be more precise, the extravagant coin-sized jade ring on his hand. Priceless magical artifact, Himari had said. Probably a forgery, Tomoe said. This must be the self-proclaimed thaumaturge from Haneoka, here to investigate the Eternal Chasm. His aquiline nose seemed to contract into something even more pointy when he saw who he'd bumped into. "Watch it, girlie." 

If Moca had been here, she'd have made an innuendo out of his presence around the ground quarters. Since she was only Tsugumi, she apologized. Not that he seemed to be listening. He made a show of… sniffing for a scent? Dusting his once-immaculate gold-threaded robe, he narrowed his eyes at her. "You're one of the servants living in these quarters, aren't you? Tell me, has there been anything unusual lately?" 

The wolf immediately came to mind, and just as immediately, the reluctance to speak of it. Tsugumi was a terrible liar, however. If Himari hadn't shown up when she did he might've pried the story out of her. As if sensing her distress her friend appeared, and with the smidgen of lordly charisma rubbed off of her older sister, Himari sent the Haneokan thaumaturge on an imagined errand. Or possibly the captain of the guards did want to see some "magic tricks". 

"Thanks for the save, Himari." 

"Ugh, that creep, as if he'd be here if we didn't need to keep the Haneoka Princeps happy. But, Tsugu, I really was just looking for you. You're going to check in on the stranger, aren't you?" 

There was a defiant gleam in Himari's eye that usually came about after getting a reprimand from her sister. Tsugumi'd learned it was best to let it fade on its own. If Moca had been here, or even Ran… 

Himari deflated somewhat on seeing that nothing had changed with their mysterious stranger. She remained peacefully sleeping even when Himari played wit the ends of her curls. "What do you suppose someone this beautiful is doing in the forest with a wolf?" 

Tsugumi blinked. Certainly the woman's features were pleasing, even striking with the sunlight falling on her just right, and — Tsugumi shoved the thought away with considerable embarrassment. "W-what did your sister say? About searching for the wolf?" 

Himari pouted. "Said I should stop distracting our hardworking subordinates with my useless whimsies. But it's not just a whimsy, I'm telling you!" 

Tsugumi shrugged helplessly. She herself had work to do. For the rest of the day and well into the night she had her hands full. There was always something that day. Yet another griffon was spooked and attacked another, both beasts ignoring their riders. It was unusual, Tsugumi's father's griffons were trained to be obedient. This, and other small things that needed her attention, meant that she practically crawled to bed and nearly fell asleep with her day clothes on. 

Come the next morning — actually afternoon, Tsugumi had slept in ridiculously late — a different sort of chaos awaited her. Himari was shaking her awake, unusually serious. 

"Tsugu, come on! Someone's dead and you're sleeping through it all!" 

Tsugumi jumped, nearly knocking into Himari's jaw. Himari said, "Whoa, calm down. No one really died, but night patrol found blood on the grounds and when we took rollcall no one's seen that Haneokan ponce since morning. My sister's sent a search party to the forest, but at this rate she might send reinforcement." 

Tsugumi's brain finally caught up. Somehow she remembered the thaumaturge sneaking around the ground quarters. "Himari, the woman we rescued!" 

She dragged Himari without explaining. Tsugumi only felt herself breathing again when she saw the woman still lying in bed, still breathing. 

"What the hell, it's her you're worried about…" 

"Sorry, it's just, we found him sneaking around here, remember? So I…" Tsugumi found herself unable to explain. "Uh, well, in case there's a clue…" 

Himari didn't seem to be listening, however. She nodded absently, looking about the room, saying, "Uh huh. Look, Tsugu, I'm saying this as your friend — hey, what's this?" 

It looked like a large patch of dried blood. As big as her fist, it would've been a considerable amount of blood. Tsugumi's heart skipped, then she saw that Himari was holding it and admiring the — what, plate? — in the light. Tsugumi couldn't blame her for being mesmerized. She too was loath to look away, even though the longer she stared the more it grew in her sight. It was as if her heart was drawn to it. So much so she almost didn't notice the stranger stirring awake. 

Her name — once Tsugumi had fetched her water and food and helped her make herself comfortable — was Lisa. She didn't remember much else. Tsugumi believed her. She looked at everything with wide-eyed wonder. She also didn't seem to know how she'd ended up in the forest without clothes. 

"This is the first time I'm hearing it," Himari said. 

Tsugumi, who'd nearly combusted from asking about Lisa's state of undress, wished spontaneous combustion really was possible without magic. "W-well, it's not actually important, is it?" 

Lisa's laughter was rich and soothing. Being awake suited her, Tsugumi decided. Lisa exuded a radiance that was sorely missing from Uehara Castle (with apology to Himari standing next to her). Kindly, Lisa said. "That's right, what's important is that you saved me, and I'm grateful for that. If there's anything I can do — " 

"No, no, no, that's not how it works. You just sit tight and get better while we hunt for the wolf, all right?" 

It was as if a shutter had fallen on Lisa's face. "The wolf?" 

Tsugumi said, "When we found you, a wolf was also there. I think it might've been protecting you." 

Himari shot her an annoyed look. "Well, we also suspected it might've attacked someone. But it's really nothing you should be worried about. We'll protect you, I can give you my personal guarantee on that." 

Himari didn't have any authority that her sister hadn't seen to give her, but Tsugumi didn't think Lisa needed to know that. Lisa seemed to be only half listening. A frown marred her clear forehead. Slowly but surely she said, "I'm sorry, but it looks like it might've been important after all. I need to find the wolf." 

"But I'm sure they'll find it without us," Tsugumi said, "and we'll only be a burden." Rather, Himari's presence would distract her sister's soldiers; Tsugumi herself merited no such protection. 

"They won't. The wolf would only appear before me. I can't explain it, but I think — I know we're connected to each other. But the only way we can get answers, for mine and yours, is to find the wolf." 

There was an urgency in her voice that made Tsugumi inclined to agree. But Himari, for once the more prudent, said, "Let's just see what the search party will turn up. They should be back soon. Or until you get your strength back. But I'm sure my sister's men will be back sooner. They're pretty good." 

Tsugumi and Himari then excused themselves. Unfortunately work around the castle was not suspended with the recent troubles. Tsugumi tended to the injured griffons with half an ear for noise coming from the gates, dreading the search party to return with the wolf trussed up like a boar, or worse. But that nearly got her beaked, so Tsugumi focused on her work. So focused that she didn't notice Ran standing behind her and almost earned another beaking. 

"Sorry, Tsugu — whoa." Ran patted her back awkwardly as Tsugumi tightened her hug. 

"It's been so long. A whole year! How're you doing — is it cold — I'm not sure where you really live nowadays, Tomoe said in the caves on the cliff by the Endless Chasm, but — " 

"Breathe, Tsugu. And, uh, you know I can't talk to you about it." 

Tsugumi released her. Ran seemed unhappy — which wasn't good, but it was normal — but also more resigned. Tsugumi wanted to hug her again. No one was more unhappy than Ran that becoming her father's apprentice meant inheriting his hermetic lifestyle. But the realm needed a thaumaturge, a true sage to watch over the Endless Chasm, and like everyone else on Uehara Castle, Ran knew her duty. 

Ran cleared her throat. "Actually, I'm here on sage business. I was going to ask Tomoe but I couldn't find her…" 

"Oh, she's currently in the forest, looking for a missing person." 

Tsugumi told her everything. It was a short story. By the end Ran was frowning. Tsugumi said, "Was Tomoe right? Is it really the elves?" 

"I can't say," Ran said. "Though, it's funny that you mentioned that fairytale. It's not really… it was true once upon a time. The wolves were nemeses to the dragons. One appearing now would mean the other might, as well. And that'd be bad news for us." 

Tsugumi shuddered. The orange sunlight falling on Ran's hair suddenly looked like blood. "The dragons? I guess the stories make them sound nasty…" 

Ran hesitated. Not for long, they were childhood friends used to telling each other about everything. "The stories are watered down. Made them no more than your garden variety predators with wings. Which is what they were, I suppose, predators, of civilizations. They let everyone live because it was amusing to them, but when it suited them they'd swoop down and culled villages, cities, mountains and oceans too if the wilder stories were to be believed. No one could oppose them, not the elves, not humans, not even the gods. The gods weren't gods then. They only became mightier than us because they ate the dragons and took their magic into us. So did our ancestors and the elves', though less impressively. So if one were to come back now, even now… well, it's going to want vengeance, and even just one of them wouldn't be good for the world." 

Tsugumi looked toward the forest. The sun was setting. Soon it would be dark. Soon Tomoe and the other soldiers would have to return, and then… what? Wouldn't it have been too late for the poor thaumaturge either way? 

Himari came running. "Tsugu! I can't find — oh, hey Ran!" 

"Find who?" Tsugumi asked as she watched Himari switch priorities and tackle Ran into a bear hug. 

"Find — oh, that's right. Lisa! She wasn't in her room when I went to find her. And the giant scale was gone!" 

"The what," Ran said, so abruptly Himari released her by reflex. 

"Ack, sorry Ran… we found something that looked and felt like the scale of a giant snake, about this big." Himari demonstrated it for her. "Then I sorta misplaced it. What's wrong, you're looking really intense right now?" 

"…Just a really bad feeling." 

Tsugumi said, "Anyway, we should find Lisa. She really wants to find the wolf — but I don't think the wolf will hurt her! It almost bit _me_ when I tried to approach. But it's still dangerous to let her go to the forest alone." 

Ran seemed like she wanted to object, but her head snapped up as if hearing a sound only audible to her. " — drat, the old man's calling. Listen, this is all sounding like a pain in the ass, but if Tsugumi's sure the wolf protected her — " Himari seemed incredulous. Tsugumi meanwhile felt embarrassed, but also mollified. " — I can help you get to her. But then you'll have to go back on your own." 

"I'm sure," Tsugumi said immediately, and not a second later Himari nodded. 

Ran closed her eyes and began chanting soundlessly. Tsugumi saw so little magic in her life that she thought she ought to feel something. But all she saw was Ran suddenly pulling out a rose out of her sleeve (this too was another thing Tsugumi only knew from books). "Be careful," Ran said. 

Tsugumi felt a tug at her core. The castle grounds had disappeared. All around her were the tall trees of the forest. And right before her was a very surprised Lisa. 

"There you are!" Himari said. "We should get out of here." 

It was dark. As soon as she thought that, the rose in her hand began shining. Tsugumi sent her gratitude to Ran. 

But Lisa was stubborn. She seemed pale in the magelight. "You should go back," she said darkly, "I have to stay here. There's no time — Sayo!" 

She yelled at the night sky. Tsugumi nearly jumped in surprise. The forest seemed to rustle as Lisa shouted again. "Sayo, I know you're here! We're running out of time. You promised me, you coward! I have other people with me, are you going to risk them too, asshole! Oathbreaker!" 

Unconsciously, Tsugumi took a step back. Something was not right. Lisa was screaming like a madwoman, but the fear in her voice cut deep. Then she turned to Tsugumi without warning and Tsugumi did cower. 

Shadows grew in Lisa's eyes. Even her voice sounded darker. "I'm begging you, please leave me! Run for your lives! Tell the others to go back!" 

Tsugumi's tongue was stuck to her palate. Himari's wasn't. "No way, we came all this way to rescue you." 

Lisa made guttural sound more hideous than all of the castle's hounds growling in unison. Tsugumi couldn't help it — she stepped back. A hulking shadow leapt out of the darkness and stood between them. The wolf's back was to her as it growled at Lisa. This close, this dark it was even larger, but at the moment nothing felt safer than standing in the wolf's shadow. 

"So that's it, I just needed to threaten them?" The wolf growled, but didn't move. "Tsugumi, Himari, run! I… Damn you, Sayo!" 

It was the moon. The cold light of the moon fell through the trees. The faintest of silver light, fainter than Ran's magelight, fell on the people assembled. The wolf was gone, and the one standing in front of Tsugumi was a tall woman brandishing a sword. Towering still over her was a dragon. Tsugumi had never seen one, and the illustrations in children's story books didn't do it justice, but she knew without a doubt this was a dragon. 

Lean and made of all edges, baring teeth that made the knight's sword look like a wooden stick, it was its wrathful cry that pierced Tsugumi. An anger too human, driven mad by grief and turned outward lest it consumed the dragon itself. At Tsugumi, Himari, the entire human race and the gods, and most of all the woman before her, Sayo. 

She stared it down, this Sayo, her blade unwavering. For a moment no one human or dragon made a sound. Tsugumi thought she heard Tomoe's voice urging her company. Though she was far. 

Himari broke off first. The beginning of a cry for help burbled in her throat. Tsugumi's sight was too slow to see everything that happened in time. The dragon was on Himari in an instant, and Sayo too late. Himari went down — a part of Tsugumi refused to see how bad and so she averted her eyes. Sayo stood over Himari's body, once again engaged in a battle of wills with the dragon. Feint after feint from both sides as if dancing, but neither would step over an invisible line. The dragon made a frustrated noise. Tsugumi thought it would attack first. 

Help arrived before it did. Tomoe's spear and Tomoe's howl, the former missing the dragon's neck by a hair and the latter it returned twice as menacing. But it was surrounded. Lady Uehara's men flanked the dragon, reticent at first, then agitated as they noticed Himari's fallen form. Tomoe seemed ready to wrestle it barehanded. Yet the dragon snorted contemptuously as it seemed to consider breaking through. And it would be able to easily sweep them aside, Tsugumi knew it in her bones. 

Sayo stepped into its line of sight, once again putting herself between the dragon and everyone else. She seemed to be saying something to the dragon, words too low to hear. The dragon roared in return. To Tsugumi's astonishment, it then spread its wings, and with a single, powerful stroke shot into the sky. A few of the quick-minded soldiers fired arrows at it, too few and too late. 

Tsugumi couldn't look away even after she could no longer see the tip of its blood-colored tail. Tomoe shouted Himari's name and rushed to her side. Chaos all around as no one seemed to know what to do. Among the din the knight called Sayo stood silent even as the soldiers demanded her to stand down. It was then Tsugumi got a good first look at her. She had the face of a woman who had decided to die. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter and the next is a sort of fantasy reimagining of what canon Afterglow thinks of Roselia like this... except I'm using the wrong characters, whoops. Also this fic in general is a fantasy rehash of the themes in A Season for Fireflies. Or maybe since this was penciled in first Fireflies was the mundane AU reimagining? :thinks:  
> It's my first time writing Afterglow, so please tell me how I'm doing!


	5. Tsugumi and the Wolf (II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Once upon a time, there was a wolf and a girl, and also a wolf and a dragon.
> 
> Tsugumi's encounter with the wolf-turned-human Sayo reaches a conclusion.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> More fantasy violence at the end.

Tsugumi had never been to the dungeons, but it turned out to be exactly as dark and dismal a place as she'd imagined it would be. Her steps echoed unnecessarily loud. The gaoler's eye followed her movements out of better things to do. The cells were mostly empty after all, save for the newest entry. The swordwoman Sayo sat in her holding cell, bereft of her sword, slumped like a marionette with its strings cut off. 

As Tsugumi approached she asked, "How fares your friend… Himari, is it?" 

Tsugumi found herself sympathizing with her. Imprisoned through no fault of her own, and yet the first thing out of Sayo's mouth was asking for Himari's health. "She'll be fine. The healers are taking turns helping her." Tsugumi shuddered to think what would've happened if the search party hadn't included a healer. 

"Good," Sayo murmured, closing her eyes. Moonlight trickled through a rat-sized gap near the short ceiling and gave her profile a translucent glow. It was a face made of sharp angles, fine bones giving shape to pale skin burnished by the sun. Her hair, long for a warrior and coiling about her neck like a silk shawl, reminded Tsugumi of frozen water. She longed to touch, to see if the woman was as cold as her appearance. Tsugumi's eyes landed guiltily on the green patch of bruise marring her jaw. Disappointed she couldn't have punched the dragon, Tomoe had directed her fist at a docile Sayo instead. 

Tsugumi set down the tray she'd been carrying and carefully slid the content through the grates. A loaf of bread and a tiny bowl of soup wasn't much, but even then the cook had been displeased. 

"Um, you should eat and then rest. Lady Uehara would want to see you tomorrow morning." Lady Uehara had been livid. Despite Tsugumi's defense she'd meant to hold Sayo responsible for her sister nearly dying. 

Sayo watched her through one eye. "Are you not afraid? I appeared to you as a wolf, and in the morning a wolf I will become once again." 

"W-well, it's certainly unusual, but my friend Ran always says there are strange and deep magic beyond our understanding. So someone who can turn into a wolf, or I guess a wolf that can turn human, it's a little unusual but not impossible. What matters to me is that you defended Himari and me. And when we first met, you defended L-Lisa against me and Tomoe as well. I believe you must be a kind person, er, wolf." 

"But I am not. She had the measure of me. I am but a dishonorable coward, and my cowardice very nearly cost your friend her life." Sayo shook her head. "You should not waste your time with me." 

"O-oh, but I don't think I'm wasting my time. If I tried to sleep I'd just have nightmares about Himari or the dragon. And I don't think you're a coward. A coward wouldn't have stood up to a dragon. I might not understand correctly, but it looks to me both you and the dragon didn't want to hurt each other. And, and she probably didn't mean to call you a coward, she just sounded desperate. You both seem to care for each other very much! It's not cowardice to not want to hurt someone you cared for, even when she was having teething issues." 

Tsugumi couldn't say what pushed her to make her appeal to the point of borrowing Moca's flippant approach. Maybe it was the despondent gloom clinging to Sayo, or how meekly she'd submitted to Lady Uehara's judgement. Maybe it was because Lisa's desperation belied an ironclad trust in Sayo. Moca would often tease her for being easily moved, but Tsugumi couldn't help her instinct. 

At present Sayo was staring at her. She was perhaps offended. Tsugumi quickly stood. "I'm sorry, I was over the line. Um, I'll come back later. But please do eat and rest if you can." 

Her feet took her to the infirmary without thinking. It wasn't that she wanted to see Himari unnaturally still and only held together by sheer magic and bandages, but she figured she might find Tomoe there, too. But Tomoe wasn't around. Himari seemed to be sleeping despite the noise her fellow patients made. Against expectations the search party had managed to find the thaumaturge alive but for an arm. The healers had stopped the blood loss and restored all they could, so now he was fully awake and mourning his ring full of arcane magic. The dragon had swallowed it and his arm in one bite. Would that — though Tsugumi wasn't so mean as to wish it to anyone, she thought, just a thought, the dragon could have eaten him as well. 

There were other patients as well that hadn't been there when Tsugumi had gone to see Himari. They fared no better than her. One was even missing an arm and a leg, and another unrecognizable with terrible burn. Tsugumi felt ill, and turned. In her rush to leave she nearly bounced off Tomoe. 

"Tsugu, what're you doing?" 

Tomoe had shed her armor and spear, so she must've gone off duty, or more likely her commander had ordered her to rest. She took one look at Tsugumi's ashen face — one look was all Tomoe needed, usually. With Tomoe's comforting weight draped around her shoulders, Tsugumi followed her outside. Those soldiers, Tomoe explained, because Tsugumi insisted on knowing, were minding their business in the watchtower when the dragon descended on them. And then she asked, once again, what Tsugumi was doing. 

"I couldn't sleep," Tsugumi lamented. 

"So you went to see the wolf." 

"There's nothing else… wait, how did you know? Did you go down the dungeon yourself?" 

"Same reason as you." Tomoe shrugged. A shrill demand to see Lady Uehara came from the infirmary's window. Tomoe glared as though her ire could cross walls. "Though here's not better. If only the wolf had got to him just a bit later." 

"Tomoe!" scolded Tsugumi, then the rest caught up with her. "What about the wolf?" 

"Saved him, or so he says. And it's not the kinda thing people like him would lie about. I tried getting the story out of the she-wolf down there, but I swear the wolf was more talkative than the woman." 

Tsugumi gently laid a hand on her arm. It spoke to Tomoe's fatigue that she leaned a little into the touch. "You should really get some sleep," said Tsugumi, "I'll go talk to Sayo if it's important to you." 

"She told you her name, eh?" 

Her ploy backfired. Tomoe half-dragged Tsugumi back into the dungeons instead. Sayo didn't seem to have moved since Tsugumi had left her, and ignored Tomoe. 

Tomoe rattled the bars to get her attention. "Oi, wolf lady. I know you talked to Tsugu so you could drop the dumb act." 

Tsugumi said, "We know you saved a man from the dragon. If we tell Lady Uehara, she might let you out." 

"She might," came the sardonic reply. "And I might prefer remaining here." 

"Listen here, you little — " 

Where Tomoe went high, Sayo went low. "In the morning I will become what you needed of me. Until then I am useless to you." 

If there hadn't been bars between them Tomoe might've charged inside and gave Sayo another bruise. Tomoe's nose flared, but she surprised Tsugumi by speaking evenly. "Well, that's fine. We don't need you to track the dragon. So in the morning it'll turn back to the woman, right? We'll just get her then. See how you'll like having your nemesis snatched from under your nose." 

Sayo finally looked at Tomoe with some heat, and Tomoe, as was her wont, gloated. "That's right, I know all about your fated enmity or some shit. You live to kill a dragon, but no one's ever said only a wolf can kill a dragon. Get what I'm saying?" 

"Tomoe, please," Tsugumi whispered urgently, not only because Tomoe was being needlessly aggressive, but Tsugumi also knew she was wrong. Tomoe hadn't seen the wolf's reluctance to kill Lisa when she'd been vulnerable, or the dragon holding back against Sayo. 

Something of Sayo's aloofness had returned. "I understand. You're unable to catch the dragon, but unwilling to risk waiting until morning, or if the woman would return at all. Else you would not be begging for my help." 

Tomoe's expression soured, but Tsugumi spoke before she could. "Please, if you would help us. At the very least we'd like to understand what's going on." 

"What's there to understand?" Tomoe muttered. "A fire-breathing man-eater isn't going to stop eating people just because you ask it nicely. Even if it's you, Tsugu. And that's not including any elf shenanigans." 

"You would be wrong," Sayo said, a strange glint in her eye. 

"Yeah? I've got five dying people on this night alone, maybe I should've waited until someone's gone down its belly? But I'm wasting my time here. Haneoka's going to hear about this soon. The Princeps' wizard legion would make short work of it." 

"It is magic she is after, not people. The Princeps' wizard legion, were they to become miraculously competent overnight, would be akin to sending a tributary banquet to the dragon. And more importantly, only the Wolf… only I can kill her. Only I can end this to everyone's satisfaction." 

Sayo seemed to have come to a decision. She heaved herself off the floor. Sayo didn't quite come close to Tomoe's full height — almost no one did — but Tsugumi suddenly remembered that the wolf was twice as tall, and could break the dungeon cell from within if she wanted to. 

"Call off the hunt for the dragon. Leave her to me. I will make sure she will trouble you no longer." 

A few minutes later Sayo was free, and Tomoe was grumbling to Tsugumi. "Why the hell does a wolf sound like a prissy noble ass from Haneoka anyway." 

"Um," Tsugumi said, preoccupied with Sayo's grim expression when Tomoe mentioned the body count. The same face she'd made after telling the dragon to escape. Tomoe didn't notice. Their dependency on Haneoka chafed at Tomoe for reasons Tsugumi didn't understand yet — and probably wasn't too relevant now except that it'd made her agree to Sayo's demands. 

"Anyway Tsugu, follow her, help her pick a griffon, make sure she stays out of trouble. She's got a soft spot for you. Definitely don't let her leave before I get back." 

Tomoe needed to report to her commander, or to Lady Uehara herself, and so Tsugumi was alone with the wolf once again. Behind, Sayo finally took the last few steps toward her temporary freedom and emerged from underground. She seemed to be very interested in the full moon, or its reflection on the blade of her sword. Tomoe herself had returned it to her with a respect she accorded few. 

"Is everything all right?" Tsugumi asked. "Do you need anything else? If it's armor the quartermaster might have some spare in your size. Although, um, they'd all be human-shaped…" 

Sayo stared at her for a while. Then a miracle happened, the corner of her lips twitched upward. "You need not worry on my account — I wasn't always a Wolf. And in any case, it's better that the dragon doesn't see me as a threat." 

There it was again, a conviction not in herself but in… the dragon? Tsugumi wondered. Her impression of Lisa the human was pleasant, but too brief, and irreconcilable with the vicious beast. Yet seeing Sayo's grim determination, Tsugumi couldn't contain her herself any longer. "I'm sorry," she blurted, "we're asking a cruel thing of you." 

Sayo seemed nonplussed. "It's none more cruel that what _she's_ asked of me. It is not cruel to ask me to mind my duties." 

"But you seem to care for each other very much. It's cruel to ask a friend to kill another." 

Tsugumi tried imagining it: Moca hiding a knife behind her smile toward Himari. Ran and Tomoe, butting heads for the last time with fire and steel and blood. She couldn't imagine it for long. There must surely be a cause, and it would have to be just to move her friends so, but what a cruel world it would reveal! 

Sayo frowned. Not displeased, Tsugumi would like to think, but simply deep in thought. "I wonder if a friend is what I am. We serve the same cause, the same leader. It is in Lady Minato's best interest that we keep each other alive. Although that is only true of myself and uncharitable to her — she, Lisa, is ineffably kind, to the deserving and undeserving alike." 

And what dignity would this Lady Minato have to posses to have both a dragon and a wolf under her command! And Sayo herself — Tsugumi's friends had always told her she had too much empathy with wild beasts, the more dangerous the better — in Sayo she'd sensed nothing but a gentle spirit. "Surely you deserve it," Tsugumi said empathically. 

Sayo carried on as though she hadn't heard Tsugumi. She must've carried these stories to herself for too long, Tsugumi thought with pity, very few people must've given a wolf a time of their day. 

"Lady Minato hadn't wished to take her along on our mission at first, though they are old friends. I'd thought it was a lack of confidence in her abilities as a healer, but now I believe it was Lisa's strength of heart she'd doubted instead. Or perhaps it was simply our arrogance — our quarry seemed frail enough that we wouldn't need a healer. 

"We were wrong. The monster nearly destroyed us in one fell swoop. Lisa would have been justified to leave us to reap our fruits of our arrogance, for we had said terribly unkind, dare I say malicious words to discourage her. Yet it was to her credit that she'd followed us regardless, and nearly died to save us. Nearly, by accident, though now I wonder if it hadn't been on purpose…" 

Her silence stretched long enough that Tsugumi timidly prompted, "But you all got out all right, didn't you? And she trusts you until now." 

Sayo stared at her sword hand. "I wonder. If there had been others more suitable… But I suppose it doesn't matter. There was no one else. It is as Lisa herself had made it to be, the better to die of self-effacement in obscurity. Yet I couldn't look away. After our first battle together, I vowed to myself that as long as I can call her my comrade I would never let Lisa sacrifice herself needlessly. 

"But rest assured. I swear on my life the dragon will not trouble humanity any longer." 

"But, your other vow — " 

Sayo smiled. It was sudden and shy, like discovering a flower out of season, that Tsugumi bit her tongue. "Thank you, Tsugumi, for showing what I must do." 

Following this grand declaration was a mundane, somewhat sheepish request for a loan of a horse. Tsugumi, just now remembering Tomoe's order, took her to the griffons' stable. Of course, she realized belatedly, only on griffonback could one catch up with the flying monstrosity that was the dragon. But could a wolf ride a griffon, she wondered? 

As a matter of fact, Sayo froze at the sight of the sleeping griffons, then slowly eased herself. "I see, these are griffons," she muttered more to herself than Tsugumi. 

"Unfortunately they're only trained to be ridden by humans…" And, Tsugumi thought back, the wolf was easily as big as two griffons, maybe three. She was distracted by the image of harnessing three griffons to the wolf like a cargo. 

Sayo eyed the closest one dubiously. "I suppose it's not much too different from riding a horse," she said reluctantly. 

"Well, not exactly — " 

"That's easy, you're riding with me, wolf lady." Tomoe clapped her giant hand on Sayo's shoulder. The latter seemed to struggle not to wince. 

"No way, none of these poor darlings can carry two of you at once." 

"Yeah, well, can a wolf ride?" 

"I am not — " Sayo began, then pinched her nose. It struck Tsugumi only later of how human her manners were. At the moment, however, she was busy gathering her courage for the next. 

Tsugumi said, "Y-you can ride with me!" 

"Tsugu, no," Tomoe said, suddenly serious. 

"It will be dangerous," Sayo added. 

"But we don't have much time and — " she looked at Tomoe pointedly " — Lady Uehara didn't actually give you permission." 

Tomoe shrugged. "She's fine with me throwing myself since, I quote, 'maybe chewing through your thick head might slow it down'. But no one else, so it's just you and me, wolf lady." 

"Just me," Sayo said firmly. She went up to the nearest, and also biggest and strongest griffon. Tsugumi had taken care of him since he'd hatched so she could see he was only pretending to be asleep. Sayo, oblivious, spent several moments wondering what to do, and stiffened unnaturally when he suddenly opened his beady eyes and shoved his beak close to her nose. Mischievous baby that he was, he squawked, knowing Sayo would flinch. 

Tomoe snorted and told Tsugumi to saddle up. Moments later they were in the air, Tomoe on her own griffon, an older female with a steady personality to balance Tomoe's reckless riding habits. Sayo sat very still behind Tsugumi. Tsugumi tried giving pointers, but once they were in air she was focused more on directing the griffon to follow Tomoe. Her blood was pounding in her ears — from thrill, for no pleasure could match that of soaring through the skies unbound, and from dread, for she'd never ridden into battle before. It nagged at her, how Sayo would reconcile her oath to protect Lisa and her promise to take care of the dragon. 

West of Uehara Castle, at the end of the known world, was the Endless Chasm, and before it was a hill. Upon the hill was a watchtower, the last erect spire of a fortress carved out of a mountain with magic. The fortress had served its function during the war with the elves, and now only the watchtower remained for presiding over the Endless Chasm. Accessing the watchtower required flight or teleportation spells as the war had eroded much of the mountain until the sole remaining path was too treacherous to contemplate. Its isolation and elevation, not to mention the surveillance artifacts left from the war, made it an asset the Uehara couldn't abandon. So it was that griffons became indispensable. 

And now the watchtower seemed to have become the dragon's resting ground. It had appeared suddenly, according to the soldiers stationed there who'd managed to escape, a shadow of death descending from heavens. Swords and arrows were ineffective, and only quick-thinking (they'd called it cowardice) had saved them and their wounded friends. 

Tsugumi found it at once. The dragon lied on the fortress's grounds, from a griffon's eye view much like a dried bloodstain on a carpet. It seemed to be gnawing on something. Tsugumi held her breath, expecting the worst, but it appeared to be gnawing on its own foreleg. 'Teething issues', she'd called it, and it seemed that in the course of borrowing Moca's flippancy she'd also borrowed her friend's knack for hitting the truth unwittingly. She felt Sayo's heavy sigh on her back. Tsugumi wanted to turn her head, to ask for a command. 

The dragon turned its head. Even from the distance the sickly green flames that were its eyes were seared in Tsugumi's vision. They grew larger until it was all Tsugumi could see for a split second before her griffon took a sudden dive. Sayo's reflex had saved them, pulling the reins, somehow manouvering the griffon out of the dragon's path. Tsugumi heard the twang and whizz of a bow and arrow, along with Tomoe's curses. Where was the dragon? She saw Tomoe's griffon rolling, but didn't quite manage missing the dragon's claws. 

Where was the dragon? What was she doing? Tomoe was shouting, was she talking to Tsugumi? Everything seemed so loud, the griffons' cries, the dragon's roar, Tomoe telling her something. Then her world turned upside down, and her vision was filled with red. But it passed. The griffon dove and turned, climbing up and up, up to meet the dragon's line of sight. It shrieked, glaring at Tsugumi — at something behind her. But it didn't move. Arcane magic emanated from the Endless Chasm. Flying over it, time seemed to stand still. Even the dragon's bloodlust was for the moment abated. 

Something warm squeezed Tsugumi's shoulder. She came back to her senses and turned her head. Sayo was smiling, humorless, but she made the effort. She might've said 'thank you', or 'run'. It was the last Tsugumi saw of her before she jumped. 

A massive wolf as dark as the night itself enclosed its fangs around the dragon's throat. The dragon thrashed and seemed to falter for a second. But its neck was longer, and it wound around to bite the wolf in revenge. The sound was so loud that Tsugumi unconsciously closed her eyes, and she felt her griffon retreat. She had to fight it to stay. When she opened her eyes the wolf was unmoving in the dragon's arms. It seemed like a child mourning the doll she'd just torn apart. Then it opened its maw with its too many fangs and tore into the wolf, starting from the head. 

Tsugumi wanted to shut her ears, but she must keep hold on the griffon's reins. She wanted to look away, but she also couldn't entirely. Her eyes strayed, blurred by tears. It was then she saw something odd. A shadow protruding from the wolf's belly, something thin. A sword carefully making a small tear from within. Then slowly a different shape crept out of the wolf's body. Tsugumi clapped her mouth, lest her surprise alerted the dragon, but it continued gorging on the wolf's carcass even as the sillhouette of a human crawled and stuck to the side yet unseen by the dragon. Only the lower half of the wolf's body was left. 

Something inside Tsugumi urged her to act. She must do something, only she could help Sayo. She didn't even know what Sayo had meant to do or if her action would be useful. For the first time in her life, Tsugumi acted impulsively. She dug her heels into her griffon's sides, urging it to dive. Dive close and fast, get the dragon's jade eyes to follow her. It did that, and sent fire that singed the tip of her hair. This is it, Tsugumi thought, but then the dragon let out a bloodcurdling sound. 

Tsugumi got her griffon to turn around. Her hands were shaking with fright, it was a wonder the griffon hadn't bolted. But he must have sensed the need to run had passed. While Tsugumi had distracted the dragon, Sayo had plunged her sword into the dragon's throat. The wolf's carcass was gone, the sword's blade was dark crackling power palpable to Tsugumi. The dragon's neck was held together by a thread on each end. As Sayo dangled on the hilt for a moment Tsugumi wondered if her momentum would cleave the dragon's neck apart. If it was what she'd meant to do. The dragon reached for the blade as if to pull it out. Its strength was faltering, and it grasped on Sayo instead. Tsugumi gasped and yelled despite herself, but by then it was too late. The dragon's wings had stopped moving and it plunged into the Endless Chasm with Sayo in its clutch. 

Tsugumi sat frozen on her griffon for what seemed like a long time. Without her command, the tired griffon decided on his own to find a safe purchase. She recognized it as the watchtower's landing area. Tomoe was already there, nursing her injured griffon. She was upon Tsugumi in an instant, and after assuring Tsugumi wasn't injured, enveloped her in a bear hug. 

"She's gone!" Tsugumi wailed. 

Tomoe said nothing, used to Tsugumi mourning the death of everything: abandoned fawns they found in the forest as children, a boar which nearly gutted the late Lord Uehara during Tsugumi's first and last time participating in a hunt. But this was different, Tsugumi knew. She had known and talked to Sayo if only for a short time. 

All the same, it always passed. They would return to Uehara Castle, slightly battered, but unharmed. Morning would come. Eventually Himari would recover. Days would pass as if nothing had happened. Seasons changed, and it was suddenly time for the Solar Festival. Moca made a surprise appearance, traveling the long, long distance from Haneoka to officiate the festival in their lonely castle in the middle of nowhere. They would spend as much time together as they could away from their duties, trying to resume a relationship on hold with many words, Moca's ultimately saying very little of herself, and Tsugumi's a disjointed picture of everything that had happened in Moca's absence. 

Except for one. "So, Tsugu, I heard from Tomoe. You got to live a girl's dream, didn't you, living a fairytale." 

Tsugumi paused and looked up from her darning. She wondered how Moca had been wearing her Sister's habit that it was fraying so much. But the word fairytale caught her throat. "Huh?" 

Moca's posture was languid and surely painful for her back, curled like a worm on Tsugumi's bed. Tsugumi recognized her tone as the sly drawl she thought could mask her concern. Moca could be surprisingly delicate. "The dragon and the wolf? You befriended a wolf, a big bad dragon swooped in to snatch you, but look who's come to the rescue but the mighty wolf?" 

"O-oh, that! Tomoe told you then. I'm fine, it's just, you know, me getting caught up, sympathizing with dangerous beasts, what was it, exactly because they're dangerous. Nothing I can do about them now. Honestly it feels like a dream. I guess a fairytale is what they are in the end, huh." 

But she couldn't get back to her task. The sun was setting fast, and she should be sewing while there was still daylight. She put down the needle and the habit on her lap instead. She heard a rustle as Moca sat properly, watching, but for once saying nothing. "It's not like the fairytale, you know," Tsugumi said quietly. "The wolf died. They both did. And anyway the dragon never took me away — it wasn't interested in me at all." Just the wolf, its ancestral nemesis. 

"Did you know, Tsugu, there's another version of the fairytale. I found it while I was in Haneoka, and this other girl, my senior, real upstanding and awesome and drop-dead gorgeous but unfortunately fairytale-challenged — but anyway, in that version the wolf lives. So does the dragon, sort of. See, it turns back into the girl at the end of the story. Beats me how that coulda happen when the dragon and the girl appears separately the first time." 

"So…" 

"They live happily ever after? Maybe. Though that version might also have the wolf going away at the end… but hey, they live." 

Tsugumi knew that fairytales were not real life. She knew also that the Endless Chasm truly was endless, and the ancient magic weaved into it made it so the rules of the world didn't apply to it. She knew also that of all five of them, Moca couldn't stand Tsugumi crying the most. Even so, she couldn't help but hope. 

And in any case, all fairytales had an ending. And they lived, happily ever after or not. And Tsugumi lived, as she had lived before meeting the wolf, and as she would thereafter. 

The last light of the sun had dispersed. Tsugumi rose to light some candles, then returned to her needle. Tomorrow was the festival; she only had the night to restore some dignity to Moca's outfit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to note that all the characters are aged up. Though I suppose if that's not obvious without the tag then mea culpa.  
> And yes some are taller than their canon counterpart due to, eh, European diet, let's say.


	6. Sayo and the Dragon (I)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And now back to Sayo with trust fall and trust... eating?

Wolf appeared in her dream as he had appeared to her first in the dragon's ossuary. His pelt was the starless sky, and the twin moons that were his eyes shone on her, searching for truth, or guilt, or something in between. 

_This is not what we've agreed on_ , he said, placid as a windless night. _My duty is to kill the last dragon,_ he reminded her, still without anger. _But you've exhausted all my powers to merely bind the creature._

"And mine is to protect my comrades," Sayo reminded him. His powers in order to save Lisa, and her body in order to vanquish the dragon. It had been a pact borne out of desperation on both their parts, but Sayo had done her best to honor it. "The dragon is subdued. It will no longer be a threat to the world." 

_But it is not dead. It may rise yet again. You think the dragon is your friend, but it is a creature of boundless appetites. It appreciates not your human sentiments._

Wolf was persistent. She thought he had to be, to survive so long without a corporeal form, biding for the time to kill the last dragon should it come back to life. Regardless of success or failure he would finally die alone, thousands of years separated from his kind. She felt a little sorry for him, even though if he'd been capable of such human feelings as loneliness he must've made peace with it before sealing himself in the jade forest. 

Sayo was equally stubborn. "My friend, Lisa Imai, is the kindest human I've ever known. I owe it to her to not kill her at the slightest inconvenience to my being. I trust her not to use the dragon's power for nefarious purposes." 

Wolf fell silent. The dream changed. Jade had crept into the darkness. She seemed to be lying close to the edge of a cliff, the end of the world on one side, and a hostile land on the other. Because it was a dream, Sayo had no control on who would appear in it. The dragon's shadow hid her from the world. And then there was the elf, Chisato in all her bewitching beauty. She smiled at the dragon. The dragon snarled in return. 

With sickening sincerity, Chisato said, "But you're so much more magnificent in your true form, don't you agree?" 

It didn't seem the dragon agreed, for she roared and struck at the elf with the force of a storm. To Sayo's disappointment the elf remained unharmed. She sounded more reproachful, however. "Well, you're but a hatchling. In due time you'll understand, and when the time comes you'll come seek me. I'll be waiting. And you, Hina's inferior double, should you survive." 

The dream faded — or perhaps it was never a dream. Sayo felt numb, much more frigid than the time she had fallen into the Hikawa's namesake. Had she been alone then? In those innocent times Hina had always been with her like the shadow she couldn't shake off. But even then Hina's preternatural grace would've saved her from slipping into an eternal ice river. Sayo had been fallen alone then, and Sayo was alone now. Alone, but for the dragon. So she had failed — the dragon had survived, but Lisa was nowhere in sight. And soon she would leave Sayo behind. Yet Sayo couldn't bring herself to be disappointed in herself. As long as the dragon lived so would a part of Lisa, however minuscule. How fitting that at the end she should feel no shame at failing her duties. In the end she'd completed her descent from her former glory as a Paladin. 

It was so, very cold… 

Something liquid was poured into her mouth, lukewarm at first, growing hot as it descended down her throat, and coalescing behind her heart as a small sun. Then her frozen heart had no choice but to thaw, and like an infant awakened from a pleasant sleep, to throw a tantrum, beating in fits and starts, and when no one paid attention to it, eventually settled to a sulky, but steady rhythm. 

Eventually a loud clatter jolted her awake. "Udagawa, what did you do with my sword," she said, except what came out of her mouth was incoherent mumbling. She blinked blearily against the pale, heatless magelight floating from the bedside. Rinko's work, no doubt. She was back in the room that had become so familiar to her. 

Ako paused in the act of picking up Sayo's sword. "Whoa, Sayo! Don't scare me like that. Don't get up or Lisa'll eat me." 

Contrary to Ako's intent, Sayo bolted upright instead. "Where's she," she grunted. 

"Uh, Lisa? I dunno. You know what, I'll get… Rinrin! You're here!" 

Rinko seemed much paler than Sayo had last seen her, and not entirely due to the magelight. She smiled wanly, and Sayo tried to return it in kind. She succeeded in grimacing instead, such that Ako asked if she was hurting somewhere. 

"No, I'm fine. But where is… where's Lisa?" Sayo said urgently. It was night, the time when the dragon was scheduled to make its appearance. 

Ako and Rinko exchanged glances. "Why don't you go find her, Ako… and be careful, it's dark…" 

But while she normally hung to Rinko's every word like that of a beloved older sister's, now Ako pouted and folded her arms. "What's so important that you gotta talk to Sayo behind my back?" said Ako. "Lisa's my friend, too. Is it because I'm still a kid?" 

It was moments like this that highlighted how much younger she was than the rest of the party. Rinko sighed, picking her words. "I'm sorry, Ako, but… it's also important to make sure she hasn't left… And I'm sure she'd be happy to hear Ser Hikawa's awakened…" 

But Sayo, seized by a moment of inspiration, said, "Best not. In fact, try not to alert her to your presence." 

"Basically just get out of here while the adults talk. I get it." 

Ako didn't quite stomp her way out of the room, but Sayo resolved to make it up to her. Later. Very much later, after the more urgent business had been taken care of. A part of her wanted to lie down and rest — surely Lisa herself would have told her to do the same — Sayo mustered her thoughts. She'd last sent Rinko and Ako into the an errand. "The trace of thaumaturgy you sensed. Did you discover its true form?" 

Rinko shook her head. "It was a mere distraction… and I must apologize I couldn't have disarmed it sooner… by the time Ako and I arrived back here you'd been gone…" 

Sayo knew just the elf to blame for the trap. She kept it to herself for now and urged Rinko to continue. 

"And when you returned to us you were unconscious… and Sister Imai… is collared in ancient magic… the likes of which the world hasn't seen in thousands years… As are you, though faintly…" 

'Collared', she had meant literally — a thick, jagged obsidian band circled Lisa's throat like a scar left from the bite of a rabid beast. As close as Rinko had gotten, Sayo opted to delay disclosing the truth. It was starting to sink in. None of it had been a dream, not Wolf, nor the dragon. They had both survived the ordeal at Uehara Castle, and now while the moon was out, for the moment they, Lisa and Sayo were both still human. But not quite yet back to normal, else Lisa would be by her bedside nagging Sayo to rest. 

Instead she had Rinko and her unaparalleled knowledge of the ancient and forgotten. Sayo sat taller, longing to reach for her sword. Instead, she said, "Forgive me for my abruptness, but none of this necessitated sending Udagawa away." 

Rinko smiled thinly. "And in turn forgive me, for I… you would say I pamper Ako… but I do not want her to know yet… the FESpawn disappeared some time after Sister Imai has left us… Ser Hikawa, I think you know that Sister Imai… has the touch of a dragon about her…" 

"And of the Wolf about me, can you sense that as well?" 

This seemed to take Rinko aback. "I suppose… it would only make sense… much as we thaumaturgists going back to the Age of Myths have been vigilant… so might the wolves…" 

"You knew the dragons could have returned?" 

"Not the dragons specifically… but any events that would upend the world order… For that matter I'd not suspected the dragons… much less Sister Imai… So it's true? Not just a touch, but… no, of course…" 

Sayo supposed she'd have to take her words on it. Rinko would have acted if she'd so much as suspected Lisa's true nature. "And what should you do in the event a dragon has come back to life?" 

"All my life I've been taught… ceasefire is the best we could hope of the elves… to always anticipate the gods' boredom… and the return of even one dragon would spell the end of the world as we know it…" 

"Even a mere hatchling?" 

Rinko didn't answer immediately, looking out the window as if expecting to see the dragon itself. "You're not the only one whose judgement has been compromised… or is disposed to be lenient because she hasn't destroyed the world yet… I too liked Sister Imai… and I don't want to act rashly while Yukina is absent…" 

Sayo had barely thought of Yukina throughout the ordeal, somehow confident that Yukina would approve of whatever decision Sayo would come to, or otherwise that Yukina would be too blinkered to properly judge her childhood friend. None of which would have been an issue if Sayo could have solved the problem before she returned. She said as much to Rinko. 

The Sage of Hanasakigawa didn't seem to agree. Her lengthy pause told Sayo so, a silence that stretched until Ako could be heard approaching the house. "You have a wolf with you… and Sister Imai herself… very well, Ser, I will not stop you…" 

— 

Wolf, if any part of him had survived, seemed content to sleep at the back of her mind. And so Sayo buckled her sword and set out alone. 

The Minatos and Imais lived on a hill above the village. Between the two houses the path forked into a fairly narrow cliff with a perfect view of the village below. Sayo found her, Lisa exactly where Ako had told her, and in the same pose. Sayo approached her quietly, unsure if she was more afraid of surprising Lisa into falling or attacking her — if she would see angry jade eyes staring from the abyss. Unconsciously, her hand drifted to the hilt of her sword. 

"There you are. I almost thought you only sent Ako to taunt me without meaning to…" Lisa turned her head. Her eyes seemed human, Sayo decided, they didn't glow in the dark. The worry in her voice was human, too. "You look terrible. Maybe you shouldn't be up just yet." 

"Lisa." The name tumbled off her tongue, but her old title no longer seemed appropriate. Lisa had discarded her Sister's habit. Fastidious Sister Imai had never gone without it — the symbol of her enslavement to the gods, something like Chisato's voice jeered. The gods, who had usurped the dragons of old. No, Sayo supposed she wouldn't have continued wearing the habit either. But it would also mean the red dragon still lingered in her consciousness, and it made Sayo wary. "I was looking for you," Sayo said. 

The trace of guilt disappeared from Lisa's expression, replaced with something darker. "Huh. Afraid I'm out devouring the entire village?" Lisa laughed self-deprecatingly as Sayo hastily denied the implication. "Just kidding. It's tempting, though. That's also a joke, Sayo." 

Lisa finally took pity and asked her to sit. Sayo sat herself a handspan apart. This close she felt the thrum of Wolf's enchantment on Lisa's neck — felt the recoil in her jaws as her teeth sank into the dragon's neck, and on her own neck, the dragon's fangs snapping it in two. Sayo shook herself off the memory and found Lisa peering close, her hand hovering over Sayo's neck. Her prey instincts screamed for her to run but Sayo gritted her teeth and bore the danger emanating from the hand, and after a moment Lisa withdrew. 

Affected, Lisa said, "Don't worry, I'm not going to eat anyone. The FESpawn was quite filling." 

Lisa's smile was too sharp. This one was definitely not a joke. Sayo shivered, and not entirely from the night breeze. The FESpawn, the monster which had nearly eliminated their entire party, had gone down as a snack in a dragon's gut. A mere hatchling. Yet an image of the same dragon gnawing on her own arm wrenched her heart in a different way. With a sincerity that wouldn't have come to her at a different time, Sayo said, "Better that you ate the FESpawn than yourself." 

Lisa tilted her head, rather like she was looking at Sayo out of an eye by her ear. "I was going to leave once I'm sure you'll be fine." 

Sayo spread her hands as if to demonstrate her health. "Would you not at least stay to bid Lady Minato goodbye?" 

A day, a forthnight, close to never — any time at all that would allow Lisa to calm down and come to terms with her situation. And if that was still not enough, Yukina would be able to talk sense into her. At least, that was what Sayo had meant. But Lisa hissed and glared. "What does Yukina — is this just your oath thing? How many are there now? Wag your tail to anyone who's interested, don't you?" 

The sudden and unusual cruelty in Lisa's voice crushed any objection Sayo might've had. The tirade continued. "Don't you realize your oath to me and to everyone else are contradicting each other? I'm not — I wasn't born the human way. My parents used to say they picked me out of a rock. I thought they were joking, but that was literally what happened. The last dragons created me as revenge on the world they could no longer live in. Don't you get it, Sayo? I exist to destroy the world and everything in it." 

"I don't believe you would destroy the world. Your compassion wouldn't allow it." 

"And what does a dragon know of compassion? You think I'm naturally kind, but the truth is I only pretended to be. After my parents… after, I thought if I tried hard enough I could remain human. So much for that delusion." 

It was unnerving to hear Lisa repeat Wolf's thousands-years old grudge with an insider's confidence. Yet people lied to themselves, as Sayo knew Lisa must. In all their acquaintance Sayo had found none of her deeds nor words to be artificial. It was only the dragon's influence, she was sure of it, as Wolf's thoughts, however faint, had reached Sayo's ears regardless. What Lisa wanted, what she needed was a proof that she was not the dragon— that it was not the totality of her being. That she could prevail over the dragon. Sayo had not the wherewithal to rebut her with words, but it was just as well her actions spoke louder than words. 

A rather strong breeze kicked about her hair. Sayo looked down the cliff and all the distance she would have to cover before hitting the ground, and shifted her body and fell. She felt surprisingly little fear, neither of falling nor the dragon. Surely her fear couldn't compare to Lisa's own fear of herself. Darkness rushed to meet her. Then she was snatched, something like the tip of a claw touching her back, her stomach flipping as she was rushed to meet the sky at a dizzying speed. Then suddenly Sayo was set down on flat surface. She was back on the cliff. 

She turned, trying to catch a glimpse of her savior, and came nose to nose with a livid Lisa. The white of her left eye had emptied, and the jade disk within blazed like a barely contained wildfire. Sayo stared at it, mesmerized as Lisa roared in her face. "What do you think you're doing!" 

"You said you existed to avenge your race. I gave you a chance to avenge yourself, seeing as I'd tried to kill you. That you chose to save me is proof of your compassion. As was our encounter in the forest the previous night, that even in the throes of madness you couldn't bring yourself to hurt me — I knew then I could trust you to prevail over the dragon's spirit." 

If only Lisa could see for herself how human she looked — surely dragons knew not to be confused. "What do you mean, the dragon's spirit?" Lisa asked desperately. "Did you somehow think I was only possessed? That was me! Big, red, ugly, and perpetually hungry was me the whole time! This shell — the Lisa Imai you know is the simulacrum!" 

That gave Sayo pause, but only just. For the umpteenth time she cursed the elf Chisato and her poisonous tongue. But if Sayo allowed herself to be cowed by Lisa's twisted logic she would lose. "Then all the more it grieved me to have raised my sword against you. I have sworn to help you, but I can't help you if you're dead. Therefore I must amend my vow: I hereby swear to never — " 

The rest of her speech, had she finished it, would have been lost to the darkness that suddenly engulfed her. All around fangs surrounded her like a cage, close enough that if she so much as shifted she'd impale herself. It was very quiet but for the dragon's voice, echoing from the void, _"Since you're so eager to die, shall I in my compassion eat you?"_

Surely this was a test, a retaliation for her stunt earlier. So Sayo tried to convince herself, and yet louder was the certainty, _so this is death._ Sayo had always imagined she would die on the battlefield, either because her temper or her oaths put her in the path of a sword. Her death would have been meaningful, the culmination of a lifetime of protecting something dear to herself. Not this, dying by provoking the very same person into throwing away her humanity. Above all, she felt foolish. Once as a young girl Hina had brought home a crystal snake. It was as pretty as it was venomous, as Sayo discovered when she let Hina talk her into playing with it. It had seemed so docile in Hina's hands, yet more fool Sayo for trusting a snake to never bite. 

More fool her, for poking a dragon and expecting to not burn. The dragon's rage billowed hot against her face. Sayo wouldn't admit to terror, but something like it kept her frozen in place. _Move_ , urged a voice that sounded like Wolf, _draw your sword. Move!_ The wolf fangs carved on the hilt bit into her palm. The sound of heartbeat was deafening, hers and the dragon's, together dancing a dance of fear. 

How long, Sayo didn't know. The darkness receded. The stars reappeared suddenly. The wind was noisy in her ears. Sayo gasped as if she'd emerged suddenly from under water, shivering against the loss of heat. 

_"Why wouldn't you draw your sword?"_

The dragon sounded plaintive, but Sayo couldn't bear to meet her eye, or indeed anyone's at the moment. "I… I've sworn to never again raise my sword against you…" 

_"Did you think I'd have stopped with you? Yukina would've been next, when she gets back, and Ako and Rinko, too. All the people of this village and Uehara Castle. Then I'd go to that elf, Chisato and see what she wanted. It couldn't be good for humans, but I wouldn't scarcely be able to care less. Hina'd be with her, I suppose she'd be unhappy with your death. If she'd attack I wouldn't spare her. But elves are an odious lot — I'd just as soon try to revive my dead progenitors. It worked for me, the least I could do is try to make it work for them."_

She sounded calm, as if the dragon — as if Lisa was only enumerating her plans for their next visit to a big city. Sayo seized on the similarity. It was just Lisa, and Lisa was — more fool Sayo! — a friend. "You would not do anything of the kind. Right now you're only teasing — " 

Draconic fangs filled her vision, almost touching her nose. Sayo hated that she flinched. And still she couldn't draw her sword. Lisa giggled, the sound of it like blades scrapping against each other. _"Am I? Dear Sayo, I can smell your fear. So much for trust, eh?"_

Sayo pried her cramped fingers off her sword. Useless toy, useless hand. Useless knight. She couldn't help the bitterness leeching into her voice, mostly anger at herself, but a considerable amount of it was directed at the dragon, too. "Would you rather that I belittle our camaraderie and treat you with prejudice? I don't understand what you're trying to achieve. Are you declaring your intent to destroy the world despite everything we've gone through together?" 

_"Did you know, Yukina admires you. She depends on you more than anyone, because you'd call her on her bullshit. So did I, maybe more than admire, though for me it was your kindness. A little reckless and high-handed perhaps, you're a noble after all, but when you've got it in your head to be kind you give to it everything, even yourself. I thought I could depend on these two sides of you that make up the Paladin Sayo Hikawa._

_"But I'd never considered you could be a coward. Oh, you're not afraid to die. I think you're actually a bit too eager to die, the way you would throw yourself in front of any danger coming my way. But you'd rather die than break any of your oaths, wouldn't you. Silly Sayo, can't protect anyone if you're dead yourself."_

Her voice wavered as if speaking through tears. As if dragons were capable of crying! Lisa closed her eyes. It was an uncanny sight — the jade disks were extinguished, leaving behind windows to the abyss. She'd bent her long neck so that their heads were of a height. She was the perfect picture of vulnerability. Even now Lisa was giving Sayo one final chance to redeem her honor in her eyes. 

What a farce, Sayo thought, or maybe it was Wolf. If so, this she agreed with him: honor was between Sayo and herself, what she knew she was capable of, and what she ultimately chose despite it all. Her hands had stopped shaking. She unbuckled the sword in its scabbard, and threw it down between them. 

"I haven't given up on you," Sayo said finally. "Nevertheless, if you have indeed given up on yourself, if I am wrong, let my foolishness be the death of me." 

The dragon said nothing. Green flames returned to the dragon's eyes. A seer could probably divine something out of their shadows, but Sayo wasn't one. Winds raged, fanned by the dragon's wings. The force of it knocked Sayo off her feet. Such was Lisa's disgust that she would leave without a word. Sayo watched as she drew a blood-red trail against the night sky. 

Sayo didn't remember the short walk back. She'd somehow had enough wits remaining to take her sword with her. Rinko would be disappointed, she supposed, though not entirely surprised. And then they would have to tell Ako after all. They were waiting for her in Lisa's house. Rinko, Ako… and Yukina. 

"You've returned," she said with the air of shock. 

Yukina's gaze was reproachful. And like that Sayo's failure was laid bare for all to see. "And you've failed. Now wipe that wretched look off your face and prepare to hunt the dragon." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The quote on honor might've been taken from A Civil Campaign with embellishment.
> 
> Also, yeah, can't keep Yukina out of the story forever.


	7. Sayo and the Dragon (II)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The night is still not yet over for Lisa as she tries to get some answers.

In the space between worlds there was only an endless, wordless scream, separating humans and elves like a curtain of rage. The Endless Chasm was simply too tantalising for the stodgy name the humans had given it. _Hina would love this_ , Lisa thought suddenly of another lifetime, while she was still Sister Imai of the Temple at Haneoka. Hina, then a Paladin, would often wonder aloud, why was the Eternal Chasm necessary? was it truly eternal? what would happen if it were to disappear overnight? what was it made of? Now Lisa could answer her with certainty: magic, magic, magic. The Chasm was a showcase of the ingenuity human and elf could only achieve together. Magic hollowed the world from the heavens above to the underworld below, and magic sealed the gap so that none could pass through. None but those under the aegis of one of the wolves, who existed to defy dragons in everything, and the dragons themselves. As long as there was not a dragon alive to devour the heart of the Chasm, it would forever divide humans and elves. 

It was a tempting thought. Her throat itched. The wolf, nibbling in a futile attempt to keep her in check. But it would break Sayo's heart — though Lisa was a little too late to start caring — and so she turned away. 

As Lisa approached the elven side she saw the column of smoke first, approaching from the elven side of the Chasm. It wasn't the golden elf. This bonfire blazing in the middle of a thunderstorm could only be Hina. Impressive for a human, but still only a human, a ridiculously appetizing human… 

Lisa held her breath and entered the meditation routine that had become second nature to her. The Temple Mother had taught it as a method to control her sudden bouts of rage. Had she known of Lisa's true nature then and concealed it from her, kept her ignorant and confused and pliant? She cut off the chain of thought before she could grow to resent the woman who had raised Sister Imai. Now was not the time — look, Hina was calling to her. She entered the elven space and alighted, changing, squeezing herself through the eye sockets. Her human form was suffocating, exceedingly frail, and practically devoid of all senses, but as it couldn't wreak much damage it was her favorite form. 

And maybe the childish delight in Hina's face made the transformation worth it. "Do it again!" Hina said. 

Lisa couldn't help a small smile. Like her twin, there was something about Hina that made it hard to stay angry at her. "Sorry Hina, but I'm really here for your elf. Chisato, was it?" 

"Ohoho, you should try calling her my elf to her face. But this is a bit awkward. See, I'm only here because of the Sun Festival and some godlings are out on a joyride and as fun as it is to watch no way am I going to be anywhere near that. But Chisato wasn't expecting you to come seek her so soon. And she won't cut short her time with her peacock prince even for a dragon." 

"Yeah, about that, Hina. Did you always know? About me." 

It wasn't the question she'd sought Chisato to ask — or failing that, Hina. But that was the problem with being a dragon. Lisa Imai was a sack flimsily sewed around a pyre perpetually hungry for things to eat and reasons to be aggrieved. Without the wolf's help she wouldn't have been able to regain her sanity. 

Hina wasn't helping, staring without fear exactly as her twin had just a while ago. With that reminder Lisa's anger flared. That idiot Sayo, squandering the wolf's power on an idealistic image of Lisa! That hypocritical fool, entrusting her life to someone who didn't, and for good reasons couldn't believe in herself. 

"Did you see that? One of your eyes just — " Hina made one of her peculiar noises. "Oh, I remember now! You were spiffing mad, huh, that time in Haneoka with the sacrificial bulls. You looked like you were about to shoot fire out of your eyes. I wish you had, the rite would've been so much more exciting." 

Lisa didn't remember the incident and frankly she didn't care. So what if Hina had only got close to her because she was a dragon! Though Hina's next words tested this resolve immediately. "Better question is, didn't you know you're not human, Lizzie? That weird phase when you used to sneak outside pretending to be a man — oh, weren't there rumors about you living in the woods like an animal before coming to Haneoka? Oh, you're angry now. Why?" 

Why? Living an entire life feeling strangled by her own skin, suffocated by a void that expanded as she grew closer to other people, what would Hina understand of that? As a child, she'd sometimes have the sudden, inexplicable urge to eat people. Even Yukina, even her parents — especially her parents. One day the impulse had overpowered her into biting her mother's arm with the intent to tear it off and swallow it whole. Frightened, Lisa had then barricaded herself in her room, fully intending to starve herself to death. Her parents had died to another beast instead. Lisa was certain it hadn't been her. Yukina's father had found her passed out from hunger, and if she'd hatched then, surely she would have remembered. But one way or another her presence must have drawn the wild beast. She was still guilty. Sayo might have meant well, but she was too quick to pronounce her innocent, both of her parents' murder and living as a fake human being. 

Why shouldn't she be angry? But Hina would never understand, so Lisa put the subject and her anger aside. "Just tell me what that supercilious elf wants." 

Somewhat disappointingly, Hina truly hadn't changed. Instead of cowering, she perked up. "I thought you knew. Isn't that why you came straight to the Chasm?" 

"Pretend I'm as mindless as a feral dragon." 

"Come on, Lizzie. It's another dragon, of course! I told you it would be, do you remember, I told you a magic of this magnitude had to be woven from a dragon." 

Of course Lisa had figured it out the moment she'd come within sniffing distance of the Chasm. It had been a dragon's wrath the humans and elves had harnessed to cleave the world, and the same dragon's everlasting grudge poured into the crevice to seal it against all creatures, especially humans and elves. Lisa could hear the poor dragon's dying breath rattling in her ears. He'd been dying for a while, the thousands of years since the war with dragons had ended. How long had he been in that pitiful state — unwilling to die, unable to live, flayed and unraveled and woven into the Chasm? 

Her heart wept for the last of her kind. And her mouth salivated at the mere thought of devouring him. 

"So are you going to do it or not?" said Hina impatiently. "You eat your elders when they got so weak they're basically prey, right? Chisato told me that's the way of dragons." 

The dragon took offense at Hina's glibness. It wasn't about her appetite or power, though those were also important. Dragons did not breed as mortals do; their imperative was to conserve every part of a dragon. The weak and the old were eaten that they might re-enter the cycle and someday, when enough of the dead had amassed, they would be reborn as a new dragon. 

Even so, Lisa had lived long enough as a human that her gut revolted at the mere thought of indulging in cannibalism — an act condemned as immoral by humans but not their gods. She restlessly cast about as if expecting the elf to show herself. Her human eyes could only see the lush prairie illusion hiding the barren wasteland scarred by war. Vain for the strangest things, these elves. Not that humans were better, and the upstarts calling themselves gods were the worst of the lot, and for that, all of them — 

Wolf fangs nipped at her throat, bringing her back to her senses. _Not again_ , Lisa lamented without much grit. Hina had the uncanny ability to arrive at the right conclusions through inexplicable thought processes. This time she'd read Lisa correctly: she'd rather remain ignorant of her true nature forever. The loneliness was preferrable to the knowledge of its cause and the power and imperative from the other dragons to abolish it. 

The dragons could wait another millenium if Lisa had her way. With effort she turned her mind to her original question. "What does Chisato really want? Suppose I ended the spell on the Chasm. Are the elves truly so eager to finish the war they started?" 

Hina didn't bother hiding her boredom. Only Hina would be disappointed that Lisa was behaving civilly. If it had been Hina staring down her palate on the cliff, Lisa suspected she'd have dived into the dragon's throat. Vexing in their own idiosyncratic ways, these Hikawa twins. 

Twirling a strand of hair, Hina said, "Not even the other elves know what Chisato wants, and if it's the peacock prince like Aya said I'd eat my sword. But does it matter? What do _you_ want, Lizzie?" 

"Or forget Chisato, why are you helping her? Betraying your Order and family… what would Sayo say about that? Do you think she'd hold back even against you?" 

Hina very rarely mentioned her sister, and Sayo only once while inebriated, but with hindsight the sister-shaped lacunae in their lives seemed obvious. The dragon immediately saw it as the weakpoint it was, and Lisa poked it. The old Lisa would've been too afraid of rejection to try, but now she wondered how Sayo would've reacted to the same. The frivolity was gone from Hina's smile. Her edges sang with barely contained violence. Lisa'd had it wrong. Staring down a dragon's palate, Hina would've taken her sword to it. 

"Now that's the most draconic you've been." Hina flashed her pearly teeth. She looked like a pale imitation of the golden elf. "But you're still a baby, aren't you? Even I can crush a baby dragon with just this." She tapped the sword hanging from her belt. "I'd bulk up if I were you, starting with that dragon down there. Forget about Chisato. I'm telling you, it's for your own good." 

"I'm sure it is. Have you ever thought if it would be good for everyone else?" 

Hina shrugged. "I guess I don't see why you'd care if humans and elves go to war again. You're not actually one of us — you're a dragon, and our greatest moment in history is exterminating your kind! There's no reason you should believe human propaganda about elves or vice versa. People change, you know. Sure, some idiots will mount a war campaign the moment the barrier goes down, but maybe there are enough saner and wiser people who want to find a consensus this time around. Oho, you're angry. For which part? Tell me!" 

If Lisa opened her mouth she might just spit out flames. It took all her willpower to turn her back on Hina and take off. When her anger cleared she had already crossed the barrier on the humans' side. She gave Uehara's land a wide berth and turned sharply away from her own village. Being capable of flight was the only part of her that she liked, the illusion of being able to leave her problems behind and view them from afar like ants. 

Hina, and Chisato as well, seemed to think the problem was that Lisa was in denial of her true self and didn't know what she wanted. They would be wrong — but what else could she expect from outsiders? Lisa knew what she wanted. Her entire being groaned with hunger, so much so it was a wonder she could hold back from eating Hina then and there. She wanted anything, everything, lest the pyre within her would start consuming her from inside out. She wondered how dragonkind used to live. They were not entirely mindless, she knew, nor so indiscriminate. Or rather, she hoped that they hadn't been so destructive that no one dragon could live with another. What a lonely existence it would've been. No wonder the other races had wiped them out! 

High above the clouds, only the moon kept her company at first. Soon it became apparent that trouble could find her even in the heavens. Lisa smelled their stink, ashes burnt on the crown of the sun, before she heard their raucous shrieks. On a flaming chariot leashed to a bored sun crow were three godlings, two demi-gods and one human no less radiant. The godlings Hina had babbled about, she realized. Lisa's first thought was that they, children of the sun, had no business being out at night, whose domain was the nocturnal gods'. Her second, that she still thought as Sister Imai would, stoked her anger. The gods had no right to be reaping the fruits that were not theirs for the taking, let alone call themselves anything so grandiose. The audacity of these bandits, trespassing on another world, posing themselves as saviors to mankind against the oppression of dragonkind! The elves lacked the audacity to set themselves up as benevolent overlords as the so-called gods, though not for lack of trying. 

All the years Sister Imai spent serving the Sun Goddess despite the inexplicable churn in her gut clashed terribly with the thirst for vengeance imparted to her by the dragons of old. It would be so easy to take on three mortals, all of them drunk on ambrosia and foolishly out at night, where they held no power. Even then they were still powerful enough to kill her. Hina had been right, Lisa was weak and easy prey to anyone above ordinary humans. But far from discouraging her, now Lisa considered the matter seriously. She could attempt to fulfill the purpose of her existence and die trying, and nip the dragon problem in the bud. 

But it would break Sayo's heart, and so she fought tooth and nail against her worst impulses. 

The wind shifted. One of the godlings suddenly turned his head in her direction. Lisa couldn't understand what he was saying — he was drunk, he was shouting, and yet his words didn't sound like words to her ears. Her body tensed. If she wanted to live she'd have to escape now. If she wanted to live, she'd have to attack now. But she did neither. The human had the first shot, a flaming arrow fired with such drunken prowess that it only grazed the tip of her left wing. It was followed by another, shot by one of the demi-gods with more accuracy, lodging the arrow in her torso, breaking a bone with the sound of an explosion. The pain and the heat turned everything white, and Lisa lost control of herself. Suddenly it no longer mattered what Sayo would have thought, or what Lisa herself had decided. There was only the pain and the insult the injury had symbolized, and nothing else held meaning to her until she'd paid it in kind. 

Everything blurred in a haze of blood, fire, and smoke. Lisa bit and clawed and spewed fire like a drowned woman thrashed about in panic. Whose blood was spilled wasn't important so long as blood was spilled at all. But there were three of them and only one of Lisa; though drunk and underpowered, the godlings began overwhelming her. Lisa didn't realize until it was too late. Her limbs felt heavy and her vision blurred, covered with jadeite specks — her blood. It didn't take her healer's knowledge to realize she was losing too much blood, and that she'd lost the fight long before that. She was dying. In her scramble to escape her claws caught one of the godlings and tore him off the chariot. She never saw if he was able to save himself. A miniature sun exploded before her right eye. Everything was loud and bright before suddenly it was dark and she was falling. Someone was screaming — the sound was coming out of her throat. 

She was falling and burning a trail like a meteorite. The godlings would finish her if the earth didn't, and there was nothing Lisa could do to stop it. She felt detached, a healer recognizing when a patient was beyond her help. In those days Lisa had always been terrible at giving up even though her efforts were always fruitless. Now, now at the end she'd finally learned to let go. 

The ringing stopped. A new sound filled the lull, her favorite sound. Lisa had always liked Yukina's voice in all of its stages of development, be it the innocent and unrefined sound of her youth, or the force of will giving encouragement during battle, and especially the melancholic hum in the middle of the night when she thought no one was awake. The dirge currently accompanying her fall was a yet unheard of development. It was a shame Lisa wouldn't be able to hear Yukina's voice at the end of her journey, when it would be close to perfection, but it was enough to hear it one last time. Ah, Yukina! Lisa had promised to walk with her to the end. She would have to break that promise now. But Yukina would be fine, Lisa knew. Yukina would be a little sad — though it was only Lisa's wishful thinking — but she would continue to the end. Lisa'd always admired that part of her childhood friend…. 

Lisa crashed through what felt like a sheet of glass. The ground was surprisingly, if not soft, then more welcoming than she'd thought. It smelled of home, a place where she didn't want to return to and which didn't want her in particular, but at the same time the only place which would accept her. Fire blazed where the godlings had struck, but she felt cold. The dragon's pyre was sputtering. A swarm of angry bees descended on her. Not bees, the spirits of the dragons of old. It seemed with the last of her strength she'd opened a portal to the dragons' sanctuary. Why, so that her ancestors might berate her eternally for squandering their kind's last chance at life? If Lisa could still smile she would. How unfortunate for dragonkind, and fortunate for the rest of the world, that their hope had rested on weak, useless Lisa. 

_"Ah, but I'm not supposed to disparage myself."_

"And why not?" 

_"It'd make Sayo sad."_

Then Lisa did laugh at herself. Maybe that was the true reason she'd escaped here, so that Sayo would never be able to see Lisa at her most pathetic. It was a just reward for betraying Sayo's trust in her, but Lisa still couldn't bear to see Sayo devastated… even more devastated than how Lisa had left her. _"Even though I've promised to make her smile."_

"You could still fulfill that promise. If you would come back to us now." 

Lisa rather doubted her ability to make Sayo smile. In any case the fire had gone out from her wounds and they had grown cold, as if stoppered with ice. It wasn't quite comfortable, but she might have dozed off — blacked out. Then it seemed whoever was out there was tired of waiting and bit her tail. The pain was slow to travel the length of her body. Another bite, stronger than the last, followed by a familiar harsh voice. Lisa thought the scolding was directed at her. She forced her eyes to open. The right eye refused to light up. From the left she saw Sayo wrestling with a furry mass dark as the night, smelling like an enemy but curiously also radiating a dragon's warmth. 

But the fuzzy, warm light before her could only come from Sayo. She was here, now, in the flesh, not a figment of Lisa's deathbed hallucination. Only the real Sayo would come empty-handed, her sword absent from its usual place by her side. Somehow Lisa's rage still had one last burst in it. _"Did you learn nothing? Where's your sword?"_

Sayo looked up, relief and sorrow warring for control of her expression. Lisa almost preferred her customary scowl. "I came to help, not execute you. But I have indeed learned — that you roar as a dragon but your bite is human." 

Spoken with the audacity of one who didn't know how close she'd come to be devoured, so close that Lisa'd forced herself to leave. If Lisa told her Sayo'd only hold her noble nose higher and said, surely this is a proof of your mastery over yourself. And she would be right, objectively, on this specific incident. Since Lisa wasn't so draconic as to be openly ungrateful to her savior, she only said, _"How did you know to find me?"_

"Lady Minato perceived an omen regarding you, or rather of a small, red dragon fighting three demi-gods at once and losing. Once I confirmed that it is you, we wasted no time to reach your location, seemingly not a moment too soon. As we speak, I can only hope Lady Minato has managed to convince the demi-gods you were only an illusion they found at the bottom of an urn of ambrosia. But we didn't know where you'd escaped to, and not even Magistra Shirokane's spell could find you. It was only through the connection we share through Wolf's spirit residing in both of us that she could send me here." 

The ball of abomination in Sayo's arms chose that moment to bark, as if annoyed at being ignored. _"What the hell is that thing."_

"It was Wolf's idea, worked by Acolyte Udagawa's ingenuity. As you might remember, though I am a Paladin I am thoroughly unskilled at healing, and you're not… quite human. But by possessing a dragon's skeleton, Wolf is able to act as conduit and amplifier for my healing spells. Without him I wouldn't have been able to help you." 

Sayo held it closer to Lisa's remaining eye. He had the appearance of a wolf cub for the most part and snarled and snapped his baby teeth at Lisa like a wolf. The spindly bat-like wings on his back flapped wildly, nearly slapping Sayo in the face. She chided the cub. To Lisa's surprise, he stopped struggling. 

In between being affronted that her friends had resurrected a dragon without her knowledge and horrified they has created an abominable chimera, and feeling like a hideous blot on existence herself, Lisa chose to curl in on herself, wincing at the pain. When Sayo asked what was wrong, she said, _"Aren't you going to ask how I ended up fighting those godlings?"_

Maybe Sayo didn't need to. She was many things, but not so naive as to think Lisa completely innocent. Sure enough, she replied vaguely, "Lady Minato would want to know. But I… perhaps I have made you feel as though there is no other recourse." 

The dragon had recovered enough to take offense at her savior. _"Get off your high horse, ser. You're not responsible for my being a monster."_

"I don't think you're a monster. However, I've sworn to protect Lisa Imai. I will never forgive the monster who kills my friend. Therefore I ask of you, are you so determined to become that monster?" 

Coming back from the brink of death seemed to slow the dragon's reflexes, allowing the woman she'd grown to be hold the reins. They were back on the same trail, Lisa and Sayo, the same round of arguments. Sayo hadn't changed her mind, only rephrased the situation to herself that she might fulfill all her oaths at once. No, Lisa thought, squinting at the bitter heart of glass at her core. She'd simply sworn an oath to herself to supercede all, one that neither Lisa nor Yukina nor anyone could overturn. And Lisa was once again escaping from her responsibilities by manipulating Sayo into doing her dirty work, even at the cost of tarnishing Sayo's soul. Lisa wrenched her head away, jostling the wound in her torso into reopening. Sparks hissed through the gaps of her teeth, more out of disgust with herself than pain. 

"Lisa? What's — Wolf, no!" 

But why was Sayo so surprised? Her loyal wolf had a dragon's body now, with a dragon's instinct to devour another dragon the moment he smelled weakness. With the help of undeveloped wings he vaulted to Lisa's right side, disappearing out of sight. His presence was announced presence with a gusty bite into the bloody strip of her cheek. It hurt; she hadn't realized there was still flesh on that part of her face. Lisa choked back a sigh and closed her eyes as Sayo berated the abomination until he released his hold. Sulking but ultimately submissive to a mere human. In the end he was more wolf than dragon. 

She felt something cold touch her face, followed by a deluge of glacier pouring into the wound. Sayo's healing spells were more soothing than they should be, worked through a belligerent conduit and into a reluctant target. Suddenly, and so violently she nearly spoke it aloud, she wished Sayo would leave her alone. But why should Sayo listen to her now when threats hadn't worked? The bleeding had stopped and the pain abated, the fatigue too meagre to drown into. 

Lisa opened a little of her eye, cautiously peering against the brightness. If Hina was a bonfire, Sayo was the fuzzy light of a candle burning in the rain, silent and easily overlooked, but persistent. Likely to be extinguished the moment she looked away, and so Sister Imai had kept one eye on Sayo. Lisa knew better now: given a sufficiently noble pursuit, Sayo would allow the rain to douse the flame. The candle would remain, and eventually kindled anew, though diminished, never to regain its brilliance. Sayo would bargain away her honor for a just cause, and she would live on as a husk of her former self. Lisa had known this when she'd asked Sayo to kill her. She'd just never considered… No, that was a lie. Lisa knew Sayo wasn't so cold-hearted as to be able to kill a comrade — any comrade, not Lisa necessarily — without hesitating. Maybe Lisa had counted on that hesitation, maybe she hadn't wanted to die after all. 

_Maybe? What kind of a milquetoast excuse is that?_ Though Lisa wouldn't tell her this, Sayo's pigheadedness had cornered her into being honest with herself. There was no maybe: Lisa was unwilling to die, yet unable to live with herself. What a bothersome creature! 

As Lisa was lost in herself, Sayo was absorbed in her work. With the reversal of roles came the reversal of characters. Sayo chattered awkwardly to fill the silence. "I apologize for Wolf's behavior. He's normally a gentle soul — it was he who'd suggested to fuse himself with a dragon in order to save you, his nemesis. Despite his mischief I'm sure he meant you no harm. Wolf, you must apologize." 

Lisa blinked and looked down. The abomination stepped as close to her as it was willing to. He pouted as much as a canine muzzle could pout, then with a dramatic whine he flopped backward, showing Lisa his belly. It seemed to be a canine gesture — she'd always avoided dogs and other canids for reasons that were now clear to her — but a dragon would only be insulted by such an open display of vulnerability. A dragon never willingly submitted to anyone, not even stronger dragons. Then it struck her how silly it was to be concerned with draconic social mores when none had existed in their heyday, and the only two living members loathed being dragons. 

Lisa sighed in defeat. Claws retracted, she ran a finger down the cub's belly. Sayo had once played with a dog when she thought no one was watching. Lisa copied her move, rubbing the underside of the jaw as well. The tail whipping about in a frenzy seemed like a good sign. So was Sayo's approving nod. 

Lisa sighed again. She could feel herself being defeated, but not just yet. _"It's the dragon in him. If anything this is proving that not even a lifetime as a wolf could make a dragon… civilized."_

"But he is. And so are you. After a spot of… teething issues, as every children must experience, but children learn and grow." Sayo shrugged awkwardly. "I must wonder if childhood rearing is more important than I'd once thought." 

Lisa snorted. Teething issues! Only Sayo would be so kind to her would be predators. But as she watched the wolf play-biting her finger, Lisa thought maybe there was power to Sayo's expectations even if she couldn't quite bring herself to accept it. _"What are you planning to do, force dragons to grow up as other races in order to educate them? Are you amassing a dragon army loyal to you, Ser Hikawa?"_

"I, well, I'm not planning to amass an army — I'm not planning anything. I simply…" 

Sayo seemed greatly confused by what she wanted, then irritated when Lisa told her it was just a joke. Absently scratching the wolf's ear, Lisa said, _"You're making this hard for me. I'm not sure what it is you were hoping to find, coming here. It's not compassion, you know. The reason I haven't gone around ending the world or reviving the other dragons. And I won't. That's a promise."_

The last was directed to the dragons. Oh, they threw up a storm such that the wolf folded his ears and whined even though he wasn't the target of their ire. Complaining was the only thing they could do, and Lisa was well-versed in ignoring the dragons at this point. She'd always rejected them, even in the throes of madness of her awakening. It wasn't compassion, she thought vindictively, just the natural consequences of her progenitors' condescension of humans come biting them in their collective fossilized tails. 

The timid hope in Sayo's expression hurt to look at, but Lisa supposed she deserved it, after trying so hard to destroy Sayo's trust in her. She explained, _"Setting aside if I'd achieve anything other than dying stupidly, it's just wretched business, you know, making the entire world your enemy. Anything's better, even the loneliness I've felt living among your kind. So that's it, I'm stopped by the fear of loneliness. Pathetic even for a human, isn't it?"_

"Maybe so, but it's what makes you Lisa Imai. And I know the world would be a much darker place without Lisa Imai. I'm sure Lady Minato and the others would agree with me." 

_"Ouch, straight to the heart. Excellent marksmanship as usual, Ser Hikawa."_

Sayo glared, probably wondering if Lisa was mocking her. She wasn't — Sayo might have come by her bluntness honestly, but she'd honed it into a fine arrow, the better to convey her sincerity. Right now she seemed to be drawing one with a diamond arrowhead. "You asked what I was hoping for. If you'll forgive me, my reasons are selfish. I — we need your strength. Before, you were our only healer, and from this point the FESpawns would only grow stronger. We cannot possibly conclude our quest and survive without you. So you see, it's not compassion for me, either. But if it's loneliness you fear — I cannot promise that any of us can understand, let alone fill the void where the other dragons should be, but I can — you will always have a place with us, Lisa." 

How sweet and alluring. Lisa would have to be a terrible dragon to pass it up. For the very same reason she almost ran away again, screaming, you fool! irresponsbile fool! If Sayo was a true Paladin, she would see that the best course of action would be to seal Lisa and the wolf in the dragons' sanctuary. But as she was fond of reminding her, Sayo was no longer a Paladin. And if Lisa were honest with herself, she was tired of being miserable. Yukina's quest and the bonds she'd created through it had sparked something like peace, not strong enough to banish the darkness, but in frequent enough bursts to sustain her. Lisa still had promises of her own to see through, after all. 

Her mind made up, once more she projected herself through her eyes, revelling in the look of surprise on Sayo's face, the closest she'd come to look like Hina. But they were twins after all — one believed that humans and elves could change even as dragons could not; the other remained skeptical of elves even as she entrusted her life and the world's fate in the claws of one dragon. Sayo stood still as Lisa threw herself on her, arms twitching when Lisa finally stepped back, as if she'd only just remembered to reciprocate the hug. 

Sayo cleared her throat. "Am I take it that you would come back to us?" 

"Who's us?" Lisa murmured as she took her hand. "Yukina can wait for a little more. First thing, I rescind your oath to me. I can do that, can't I, as its principal." 

There was power in words. Humans clung to it, and dragons had no use for it. Lisa drew a little from the dragon's pyre and wrapped it around her tongue. "Promise that you won't die before me, and I'll promise not to eat anything but FESpawns and other otherworldly threats." 

"…Won't you become famished with how few FESpawns there are?" 

"Shush, don't fuss about the little details." 

"Then, how am I meant to outlive you? I'm only mortal." 

"I'm sure you'll find a way." Sayo's scowl was a thing of beauty. Lisa held back the impulse to pinch her cheeks, but not to tease. "Are you just now realizing what a selfish creature a dragon could be?" 

Sayo turned unexpectedly bitter. "I cannot help but understand it as your promise to contrive to die early. That after everything you would still not trust me, or Lady Minato, or anyone else." 

Now it was Lisa's turn to feel ashamed. She should've known Sayo's objection would have come out of concern for Lisa. "Of course I trust you, Sayo, or I'd have thrown you out of this sanctuary and sealed myself in it — and your wolf too, since you've turned him into… _that_. But this is about your habit of taking the bloodiest, most reckless choice for yourself in the name of protecting us. You don't get to die for my sake, Sayo. Or anyone else's. I won't allow it. I'm far more sturdy now, so there's no need for you to tank everything." 

The wolf barked suddenly; Sayo frowned at him. "No, I don't think she means to hold the world hostage to the fate of one person." 

And where such an unassailable faith in Lisa's character had come from, Lisa was at once itching to ask and afraid to. She kept her mouth firmly shut as Sayo turned back to her, staring with an intensity that would've made the old Lisa embarrassed. "By the very nature of our quest and my job, I cannot guarantee it will never become necessary, but I suppose I can try. And in turn, may I change the terms of your promise? All I ask is that you would consider — I do not ask for more — the possibility of reintegrating the other dragons into our society." 

Lisa blinked. It sounded more like Hina's hairbrained scheme, but the Hikawa twin before her remained tall, grave, and deadly sincere. Sayo explained, "Surely you understand more than anyone else how short human lives are. I should not like to imagine you living alone after I — after we, all your friends have passed." 

"Well, that's… so sweet of you, but that can't be all." 

Sayo dropped her gaze. For a Paladin, she vascillated between being ashamed of her realistic and idealistic outlook too often. "I shudder to see the elves commandeering dragons. For surely they knew enough of this place and your existence to attempt things beyond my mortal knowledge." 

Lisa suspected it was only one elf, and one who was holding the cards close to her breast at that. But as Hina said, she wasn't nearly invested in what petty wars humans and elves were engaged in but for the friends she had on each side. The first reason, however, was something she could put off for a long time. Sayo meant well, but she had only asked her to consider, and so Lisa would. 

There was power in words, more for humans than dragons. Under Sayo's curious gaze, Lisa brought the back of her hand to her lips. Flames from the dragon's pyre carried her unspoken words, branding them on Sayo's hand. Seeing Sayo flinch Lisa wondered if it was as hot as it looked, but the flames petered, and the jade inscription along with it. 

Sayo examined her hand as though it wasn't hers. "Was that necessary?" 

"For my peace of mind more than yours, in case I decided to stop being Lisa Imai. You'll need it then." 

On that day the dragon would try to eliminate her greatest weakness first, but she could at least protect Sayo and ensure her end would come by her own hands. Sayo seemed greatly disconcerted, so Lisa smiled what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "As for your other concern, for now I'll seal this place against everyone. Wolf, if you'll help me?" 

The wolf rose languidly from his short nap and tottered over and bit Lisa's outstretched hand. Sayo opened her mouth as if to scold him, glanced at Lisa and abandoned the attempt. Lisa could take or leave Wolf's obedience, for now she needed his power more. The wolf she tasked with sealing the sanctuary — more than Lisa, he loathed the idea of dragons coming back to life, especially now that he had joined their sordid ranks. And at the same time, they needed to leave. Lisa thought of home — the discordant but irresistible echoes around Yukina's person, Ako's effervescent fountain unsullied by her time in the underworld, the ancient knowledge and duty weighing Rinko even as she sought escape in her books. 

With her other hand she took Sayo's sword hand, savoring the strength with which Sayo gripped her fingers, about as much as Lisa squeezed her hand, wringing out a different sort of power. Sayo's lips drew a thin, lopsided curve just shy of a smile. Even if this wasn't the right decision, if it would spell doom for the world in the short term, Lisa vowed that she would turn it around in the end. 

"Time to go back before Her Ladyship tries to sing her loyal knight back to earth." 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lisa wasn't supposed to get POV ever, but I thought this might be more interesting than following Sayo. Though it might also be a bigger mess...
> 
> If you have any complaints or criticism, or any comments at all, please do tell me!


End file.
